The Secret Part II: Savior
by Jenasys Lovecraft
Summary: Sequel to "The Secret" Alice's life in Luckenbach, Texas. Please read that first. All Human, AU FEMME-SLASH
1. Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain

**Disclaimer: Don't own.

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**Chapter One- Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain**

"_**In the twilight glow I seen her**_

_**Blue eyes crying in the rain**_

_**When we kissed goodbye and parted**_

_**I knew we'd never meet again**_

_**Love is like a dying ember**_

_**And only memories remain**_

_**And through the ages I'll remember**_

_**Blue eyes crying in the rain**_

_**Someday when we meet up yonder**_

_**We'll stroll hand in hand again**_

_**In the land that knows no parting**_

_**Blue eyes crying in the rain"**_

-**Willie Nelson- "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain"

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Alice Brandon awoke with a start. She was having "The Nightmare" again. She called it "The Nightmare" because it was a terrible recurring dream for Alice. She always woke up in a cold sweat, breathing heavily and tears streaming down her face.

The thing that made it so bad for her, "The Nightmare" wasn't just a nightmare, it wasn't just a dream either; it was a memory. It was the memory of her first and only love being shot before her very eyes.

Yes, Alice Brandon had only ever loved Leah Clearwater. Ten years had passed since Leah's death. Alice was twenty-seven, single, unmarried, and childless.

No matter how many dates Alice had been on, no matter how many times she'd been setup by her co-workers, she could never find anyone who compared to Leah.

She could never find anyone who stared into her eyes as Leah had. No one had kissed her with so much passion as Leah had. No one had held her as Leah had. Most importantly, she had never kissed anyone, held anyone or loved anyone as she had Leah.

Alice always found herself comparing her potential lovers to Leah. No one had come close to Leah in any department. Alice had slept with a few men and a few women, but gave up after having highly unpleasant experiences with both sexes. It wasn't that there was something wrong with them, it was Alice. Her lovers just weren't Leah.

Alice bit her lip and did what she always did after waking up from "The Nightmare." She pushed her hands into her hair and gripped tightly. She bit down so hard on her lip she broke the skin. Blood pooled into her mouth. She whimpered and tried to shake herself from the thoughts of Leah.

She threw back the covers and went into her bathroom. A soft noise caught her attention outside the door. Great, once again, she had awoken Rosalie.

"Alice?" Rosalie called to her.

"In here, Rose." Alice answered.

Rosalie Hale was Alice's best friend since Rose defended her in high school. When Alice had ran away, Rosalie used every source available to her and found her nearly two years after she'd gone.

Rosalie had married Emmett two years ago, they were working on having children at this point. However, Emmett worked for the FBI and was away quite often. Rosalie stayed with Alice whenever he was gone; she hated being alone.

Alice had plenty of room to spare in her three-bedroom home, located in the heart of Luckenbach, Texas. She worked as a physical therapist at the Hill County Memorial Hospital in Fredericksburg. She lived well enough for a single woman in her late twenties.

Rosalie poked her head in the bathroom door. "The nightmare again?" She asked softly. Alice nodded, and Rosalie crossed the short distance to her and pulled her into a suffocating embrace.

After Rosalie managed to find Alice, she had banged on Alice's door at two AM until Alice opened the door. She then proceeded to yell at Alice about taking off without so much as a "Kiss my ass". When Alice explained the situation to her, Rosalie took it all in and accepted it for what it was.

She couldn't put it into words how happy she had been to hear that Alice found someone to spend her life with. She felt an indescribable sadness when Alice told her how she had died. Rosalie put up with everything Alice was going through.

Every night that Alice woke up, screaming and crying for Leah, Rose had been there to calm her down. The first time it had happened, Rosalie was at a loss for words. What could she say to Alice?

'It was just a dream?' No, it wasn't just a dream. It was Alice's brain replaying the most heartbreaking memory it had to offer.

'It'll be okay?' No, Rosalie couldn't say that either. Nothing would be okay for Alice unless Leah was there. She wasn't there and she never would be.

Rosalie was at such a loss for words, she had cried too. She had sobbed for Leah's life ending too early, she cried her eyes tearless for Alice's broken heart. She wished everyday for Alice's soul to mend, but it never did. In the ten years that Leah had been gone, Alice had been lost.

She left that town behind, left her parents behind. She hadn't spoken to her parents since they had left for Porterville. Without Alice knowing at the time, that Friday night had been the best in her life. She had seen her parents for the last time then, and that was the night she met Leah. In a rather unconventional way, but who was anyone to judge them?

Now, Rosalie stood holding Alice tightly, waiting for the tears to stop for the night. She was still at a loss for words to say to Alice. In the eight years that she had been getting up, running to Alice's room and comforting her until she feel asleep, she had never found the right words to say.

Nothing she said to Alice during these times ever seemed to help. Nothing she said comforted Alice. In fact, sometimes it made her weep harder. However, Rosalie was learning that she didn't have to say anything. She just needed to be here for Alice.

Alice only wanted to be loved by Leah, to be held by Leah, to be kissed by Leah, to make love to Leah. Since that was far out of Alice's reach, she settled for the comfort of Rose in the middle of the night. She had mindless dates with uninteresting people. She had loveless sex with men and women she never bothered to learn the name of. All the while, she imagined Leah.

Alice had quite a bit of money saved up from the past ten years of working. She had gotten her GED, went to college and started work immediately. She had paid for college by working at bars, various restaurants and dance halls. All her education was certainly paying off now.

None of it meant a thing to Alice without Leah. She never spent any money on herself. She bought food when she was hungry, she bought clothes when she needed them, but put the rest into a savings account. Alice had no need for it.

Rosalie gently rubbed Alice's arm until her tear ducts stopped spilling salty water onto the girl's face. She put her hands on Alice's shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Ready to sleep now?"

Alice nodded and she went back to her room. Rosalie stayed until Alice was tucked beneath the sheets. Rosalie left the room, whispering, "Good night" as she closed the door. She sighed softly and went back to her room. Tomorrow, she would go to work at the same hospital Alice worked at and do her job as an RN. Then tomorrow night, she would find herself running back to Alice's room to start the whole process over.

Alice heard Rosalie's door close down the hall. She sighed and wiped her sore eyes again. She turned over and looked out the window. It was raining. Alice closed her eyes and remembered the night she met Leah, it was raining.

To Alice, the rain symbolized Leah and everything she was. Free, pure, beautiful, misunderstood. People often hate the rain because it makes the sky gloomy, but not Alice.

No, Alice loved the rain. She didn't think of it as gloomy at all. To her, it was God's way of purifying the world. As much as she hated to think about God after everything her parents drilled into her head. That was the only time Alice ever thought about God, was when it rained.

It rained the night that Leah was raped and she killed her rapists. To Alice, the rain was God's way of purifying the world of their filth. When it rained on Leah when she was making her way to Alice's house, that was God's way of purifying her and making her clean again for Alice to love.

At least, that was how Alice saw it. Alice sighed and climbed out of bed. She walked down the stairs trying to be as quiet as possible, so not to wake Rosalie. She went out the back door and stepped into the rain.

Alice sank to her knees and tilted her head up. She could feel the mud already seeping into the fabric of her pajama pants. The cold rain hit Alice's face, creating the sensation of one thousand needles pricking her face.

She held her hands out to her side and started to pray to the God she'd long lost touch with.

"Cleanse me. Purify me. Make me whole again." She stated, her rough voice just above a whisper. "You cleansed Leah so that I could love her, so cleanse me so I can live without her."

Alice's eyes spilled more tears onto her cheeks at the thought of living without Leah. The cold rain mixed with her hot tears and created a warm liquid that poured into Alice's mouth. She sobbed, a broken sound escaping her throat.

She dropped her hands in front of her and pressed her palms into the squishy mud. It seeped between her fingers. Alice had a sudden thought if her mother could see her now she would likely have a heart attack. She laughed once, even to her it sounded like a psycho's laugh.

Alice hadn't seen her mother since the weekend she and her father left for Porterville. Alice wasn't sure if they were dead or alive or if they even cared about Alice. She didn't think they'd done that much to find her.

Alice bit her lip. Suddenly, two arms wrapped around her waist. Her head snapped up to meet the angry eyes of her best friend, Rosalie.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing in the rain like this, are you fucking stupid?! Get inside!" She yelled, tugging Alice to her feet. Alice trudged through the mud, soaking wet and caked in mud to the back door.

Rosalie handed her a towel and glared at her. "Really, Alice, what the fuck were you doing?"

"I was letting the rain cleanse me." She said, toweling off her hair.

Rosalie said nothing, only nodded. Alice had told her the theory of the rain cleansing Leah for her, so she understood what Alice meant. It broke her heart to see her best friend like this, but what else could she do.

"You should shower." She said. Alice nodded and went up to her room. She grabbed some more clothes and went to the bathroom to shower.

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**A/N: I couldn't resist posting the first chapter already, especially since the final chapter of "The Secret" was so short. Hope this makes up for it! **

**Oh yeah...HAPPY BIRTHDAY CullenGurlsDoItBetter! You are now officially old enough to be in the club that Tifa and I have started called the Loveless club. In fact, you should change your name to LovelessGurlsDoItBetter and LCM should change her name to LovelessClearwaterMeraz. We're all Loveless girls at heart. ;) **

**Thanks for reading! -Loveless-**


	2. Sex Baby Sex

**Disclaimer: Own nothing, I do.

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**Chapter Two- Sex Baby Sex**

Alice got out of bed just before six the next morning. The first thing she did was run her hand through her hair. She sighed. Since she had gone out in the rain last night and had to shower, she went to bed with wet hair.

She climbed out of bed to go shower again and get ready for work. The one thing she loved about her job was that she was able to forget about Leah, just for a few hours. As a physical therapist, she was able to focus on her patient, effectively shutting off all memories of Leah. Alice immersed herself in each patient that came her way and focused on being the best she could be.

In return, Alice's patients loved her for it. They thought her dedication to the job showed that she actually cared about her patients. Really, Alice cared a great deal for them, but she knew if she was able to only focus on her job, it was easier to forget about Leah. That didn't really help her at night when she saw Leah in her dreams. Alice couldn't stop the nightmare, no matter how hard she tried.

Alice went into the bathroom and pulled down the straps of her nightgown. The soft pink silk slid down her body and landed softly on the floor. Without the clothing on her, Alice felt self-conscious as she always did. She remembered what it felt like under Leah's loving gaze that Sunday morning they made love in the early morning sunlight.

She never felt self-conscious under Leah's gaze. Leah made her feel loved, she made her feel beautiful. Alice felt like an angel under Leah's watchful eyes. Alice spent years trying to get that feeling back. Yet every time she was naked in front of another person, she felt uncomfortable and insecure. She was still trying to come to terms that she would never be with Leah again. No matter how many times her brain told her that, her heart just wouldn't listen.

Alice let the hot water from the shower spill over her body. Even the hot water couldn't compare to the warmth Leah offered Alice. Tears started to fill Alice's eyes and she fought to shake the thoughts from her head. She did this every day.

Every night she dreamed about Leah's death, then the next morning she was unable to shake the thoughts of Leah from her mind. It was a constant struggle for Alice to fit into the real world. She showered quickly and climbed out.

She dried off and then walked naked into her bedroom. She slipped on her hospital uniform and went downstairs. Rosalie was making her breakfast.

"Morning sunshine." Rosalie chirped. This was part of the daily routine. While Alice was fighting off memories of Leah, Rosalie went out of her way to be nice to her, always cheerful. Alice hated it because she'd rather drown in her misery than be without Leah. Rosalie would never let her though.

"Morning." Alice said, flopping down at the table. Rosalie smiled at her and placed a plate of waffles in front of her.

"Emmett called me last night. He's coming home in two days." Rosalie said.

Alice said nothing, only nodded. When Emmett came home, Rosalie would go back to her house and live out her married life with Emmett until he left again. And Alice would be able to lose herself in he memories without Rosalie there to stop her. Of course, Alice would miss Rose when "The Nightmare" came again, no one would be there to comfort her. Alice didn't want to keep Rosalie from her husband any longer, so she would let Rose go without a fight.

Alice hated feeling so weak. She hated that she was unable to live a happy life because she was still holding onto the memory of her dead lover. She wanted to be like Rosalie and live her life, she wanted to move on. She wanted to smile without faking it. She wanted to laugh heartily. She wanted to live carefree. She wanted to love again.

Alice sighed and ran her hand through her short hair. She knew Leah had always liked her long hair, so after Leah's death she cut it. Her hair was now styled in a pixie cut that framed her beautiful face. Alice loved and hated the hairstyle. She loved it, because it was easy to style, she hated it because it got her so much attention.

Rosalie sat down at the table with her own plate of waffles and began to eat. Alice caught Rose looking at her from the corner of her eye, so she picked up her fork and began to eat. If she didn't, Rosalie may worry about her even more than she already did.

The girls ate without speaking to each other. The only sound was their forks scraping the plates. Alice finished first and stood up. She rinsed her plate and started for the front door. Rosalie finished then and put her plate in the sink and hurried after Alice.

Alice went out the front door and climbed into the passenger's side of Rosalie's silver BMW M6. Alice had bought the car for Rosalie's birthday this year. Rosalie insisted that it was too much, but Alice refused to take it back. After all, what else was Alice going to spend her money on? She may as well use her money to buy extravagant gifts for her friends. Of course, Alice had a car of her own and it was no Honda. Alice had a black Cadillac CTS. It was her baby.

Rosalie climbed into the driver's side and started the car. She turned on the radio and glanced at Alice from the corner of her eye. It goes without saying that she was worried about Alice. Rosalie tried a million different ways to cheer her up throughout the day, and sometimes she succeeded. Then Alice would find something that reminded of her Leah, and back into the pits she went.

Rosalie flipped through the songs on her iPod until she found a song she knew would make Alice smile: "Sex Baby Sex" by Superbus. Alice giggled as soon as the opening chords started. Rosalie put the car in drive and waited for the song to get going.

She started to dance as best she would without crashing the car and singing along with the words. Alice actually joined in and started singing.

"_Il dit qu'elle dégouline de sex appeal_

_Je voudrais savoir si c'est vrai,_

_Voir quand ils mettent en route la love machine,_

_Et voir si ça leur plait,_

_Elle dit de lui que c'est un garçon facile,_

_Mais elle ne s'est pas regardée,_

_Je crois bien que dans son lit ça défile,_

_Et je crois que ça lui plait,_

_Sex baby sex, ils trouvent que c'est un délice, baby sex._

_Il dit qu'elle a souvent les lèvres qui glissent,_

_Elle met trop souvent du gloss,_

_Il aime les filles aux cheveux longs et lisses,_

_Pour que ce soit lui le boss,_

_Sex baby sex, ils trouvent que c'est un délice, baby sex._

_Il dit qu'elle dégouline de sex appeal,_

_Je voudrais savoir si c'est vrai,_

_Voir quand ils mettent en route la love machine,_

_Et voir si ça leur plait_

_Sex baby sex, ils trouvent que c'est un délice, baby sex._

_Il dit qu'elle dégouline de sex appeal,_

_Je voudrais savoir si c'est vrai,_

_Voir quand ils mettent en route la love machine,_

_Et voir si ça leur plait_

_Sex baby sex, ils trouvent que c'est un délice, baby sex."_

Rosalie pulled into the hospital parking lot just as the song finished. She and Alice broke out into a fit of giggles and skipped across the parking lot, arms linked and singing in French at the top of their lungs. A few people turned to look at them, but they paid no attention to them.

Rosalie bumped Alice's hip a few times with her own as they danced their way across the parking lot. They girls entered the hospital and promised to meet for lunch, then Rosalie went off to change into her nurse's outfit and Alice got into the elevator to go up to her floor.

She appreciated that Rosalie had cheered her up. She was even dancing a little bit to the elevator music. Alice laughed at her silliness as the elevator stopped on her floor. She walked off with a little more bounce in her step.

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**A/N: Rose and Alice fun- :) The song they sing is "Sex Baby Sex" by Superbus. Very good song, referred to me by my bff, LCM. Thanks to everyone for reviewing, hope you like this chapter! Please read my friend's Edward and Jasper story. It's "Obsessed" by Tifa .Loveless and it's VERY good. And a special thank you to O. N. Labbit, she featured my story on her profile as the Best Read of the Week. I'm truly honored. -Loveless-**


	3. So Many Roads to Take

**Disclaimer: Don't own.

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**Chapter Three- So Many Roads to Take**

"_**kono mune no naka ni kakureteru fuan no uzu **_

_**me no mae ni aru jibun no susumu beki **_

_**michi wa dore ka  **_

_**hito ni nagasareteta hibi **_

_**sonna jibun ni "sayonara"  **_

_**I believe myself shinjiru koto de **_

_**subete ga hajimaru ki ga suru no **_

_**I believe myself atatakai hikari wa **_

_**machigacchainai aruite yukou **_

_**I believe**_

**-Ayaka- "I Believe" (English translation at end of chapter)

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Her natural high from singing with Rosalie lasted her most of the morning. Alice made a mental note to thank Rosalie for cheering her up. Most of Alice's patients picked up on her cheerful mood and even rubbed off on some.

With the condition some of her patients were in, they appreciated any bit of cheerfulness, and Alice was certainly cheery today. Not all good things can last though, Alice knew this all too well. Throughout the morning she was cautious to everything around her, making sure nothing was going to kill her mood.

She was in the elevator, once again swaying easily to the usually annoying elevator music. When the elevator stopped, Alice walked off and headed over to the ER's reception desk. Rosalie was an ER nurse, and Alice would have to page her to see if she was available.

Alice stopped a few feet from the elevator. She sighed. After all her hard work this morning, trying to avoid anything that would ruin her good mood, it was all about to come crashing down. The ER receptionist, Kate Denali, hated Alice. For what reason, Alice didn't know. Kate had only ever treated Alice with hostility and resentment.

Alice drew in a deep breath and went over to Kate. She smiled and said, "Hi Kate, Rosalie busy?"

Kate looked up from her work for a second and said, "You know she is. She's busy everyday when you come down here. She actually does her job, you know." Alice ignored Kate's insinuation that Alice didn't do her job. The ER was different from working in the rest of the hospital and Kate knew that.

Instead, Alice said sweetly, "So can you page Rosalie for me?"

Kate sighed. "She's busy, okay?" She turned around to the filing cabinet and ignored Alice's glare.

Alice leaned against the desk and waited. Kate kept finding things to do so that she didn't have to face Alice. After about twenty minutes, Rosalie came into view. She smiled at Alice.

"Been waiting long?" She asked.

"Only about twenty minutes." Alice said, bored. Her mood from earlier was long gone, not a trace of happiness was visible on her face now.

Rosalie frowned. "Kate, I thought I told you if Alice came down here then page me." She said.

Kate turned around and shrugged. "I figured you were busy."

"Well, I wasn't. Next time, just page me. Don't keep her waiting for twenty minutes again. She has a job to do, you know, she can't spend her day waiting for you to pull the stick out of your ass and page me." Rosalie spat and then turned away.

As the girls walked away, Kate mumbled, "Could have fooled me." Then quickly turned around and went back to work. She knew she was on thin ice with the hospital. She was rude to people who came to visit their loved ones, she was rude to the nurses, was overly flirtatious with the doctors. She had been talked to numerous times about her behavior, but Kate couldn't help she was a bitch.

Rosalie heard Kate's words, but didn't say anything. Alice didn't hear her, but noticed that Rosalie became tense suddenly. The girls walked out to Rosalie's car.

"I'm sorry about her." Rosalie said as she put the car in drive.

"Don't be Rosie, I know you can't control her anymore than I can." Alice told her.

Rose nodded, "I know, but she's just a bitch. I wish I could just slap her or something."

Alice giggled, knowing that's exactly what Rosalie would do if she could. Rosalie smiled when she heard Alice giggle. Maybe she was finally getting through to Alice. Rosalie pulled into the parking lot of Burger King. She decided to go through the drive-thru since she had to get Alice back to work. They both ordered whoppers, fries and a drink. They ate in the car as Rosalie drove back to the hospital. It wasn't easy for Rosalie to eat and drive at the same time, but she managed.

They finished their lunch in the car. Rosalie started telling Alice about Emmett's phone call last night. She and Alice laughed together before heading back inside. Alice didn't even look over in Kate's direction as she walked toward the elevator.

The rest of her workday passed slowly, she saw as many patients as she could. Rosalie came up to her floor to get her. Since Alice likes to work overtime and Rosalie's job in the ER sometimes required her to stay later, Alice would work until Rose came to get her.

They left the hospital, recapping their day. Alice said, "Rose, I never thanked you for this morning."

Rosalie looked at her. "What do you mean?" She asked, knowing full well what Alice meant. She just wanted to hear her say it.

"I wanted to thank you for putting me in a good mood. Of course, I'll have to thank Kate for ruining it, but thanks, Rosie." Alice told her, smiling.

Rose smiled, biting back tears. "You're welcome Alice."

Rosalie pulled her BMW into Alice's driveway and they went inside. Rosalie promptly flopped down on the couch and put her feet up on the table. She kicked off her shoes, groaning.

"I am so tired." She leaned her head back on the couch.

Alice plopped down next to her. "Me too." She stretched her feet across Rosalie's lap. Rosalie had her eyes closed. Alice kicked her shoes off and smiled as an evil plan formed in her head. She lifted her foot and stuck her toe in Rosalie's nose.

"Ah!" Rosalie squealed and shoved Alice's foot away from her. "Alice, what the hell!?" She yelled, laughing.

Alice knew she wasn't really mad, she couldn't control her laughter at Rosalie's shocked face.

"I'm sorry, you were just asking for it." Alice said through her laughter.

She was cut short when a pillow hit her in the face. She abruptly stopped and looked up. Now Rosalie was laughing.

Alice glared at her. "You just hit me with a pillow."

Rosalie smirked. "Uh-huh. Whatcha gonna do about it?" She teased.

Alice leapt across the couch and grabbed Rosalie in a headlock. Rosalie stretched her right hand across her stomach to tickle Alice's left side. The girls were both in hysterics as they fought to gain control over the other.

Finally, Alice let Rosalie go and fell back on the couch. They were both trying to catch their breath from laughing so hard. Their breathing evened out after a few minutes and it was silent.

Alice lifted her foot again and stuck it in Rosalie's nostril again. Rose slapped her foot away. "Alice!" She scolded, laughing again. Alice burst out laughing and stuck her toe in Rosalie's face again.

Rosalie started to bite at Alice's ankle and Alice squealed. Alice abruptly stopped and sat up. She moved so that her back was against the arm of the couch.

"Alice?" Rosalie asked, panicked at Alice's sudden mood change. "What's wrong?"

Alice bit her lip. "I can't remember the last time I laughed like this."

Rosalie looked down. She remembered the last time she and Alice had fun like that. It was before Leah's death. Rosalie moved in front of Alice and took both her hands in hers.

"Alice, I know this is going to sound harsh, but please listen to me." Rosalie said calmly.

Alice braced herself for Rosalie's next words. Rosalie was Alice's closest friend and knew her better than anybody, but Rosalie was also honest and blunt. If she had something to say, she said it. Most of the time it was something you didn't want to hear, but Rosalie always meant well. She was loyal, caring and protective, everything Alice wanted in a best friend and everything Alice was afraid of. She knew whatever Rose was about to say that Alice definitely didn't want to hear it, but she needed to.

Alice nodded. "What, Rose?"

Rosalie sighed. "I know that Leah was your first love, and I know how much it hurt you when she died, but Alice, she was your first love. Which means you can love again after her. I don't think Leah would want you to sit around and drown in your misery over her. She would want you to live a full happy life with someone you loved. I have held back on saying this for a while because I didn't want to hurt you, but Alice, I'm done holding back. You need to move on."

Alice stared down at their hands. She admired Rosalie's wedding ring, remembering when she helped Emmett pick it out. Emmett was hopeless when it came to jewelry. She knew everything Rosalie said was true, ten years was enough time for anyone to heal and move on.

She nodded. "I know, Rose. I guess since I was so young that I held onto her longer than I should have. I want to move on, I just don't know how. Every time I tried to in the past, I failed. I kept comparing everyone to Leah, I just don't know how to forget her."

"I'm not saying you have to forget her, and I'm not telling you to run out and find someone you want to spend the rest of your life with. I'm just telling you to go out and find someone for you to love. You may spend the rest of your life with them, you might not, just find someone who you care about." Rosalie said, smiling sweetly.

Alice nodded again. "I'll try. I may need your help though."

Rosalie laughed, "As if I was going to let you do this alone. I'll be here every step of the way."

Rosalie pulled her in for a hug and squeezed her tightly. "Love you, Ali."

"Love you too, Rosie." Alice said, smiling. Maybe this was exactly what she needed. Alice took a deep breath, smelling Rosalie's sweet perfume mixed with the hospital. This could be a fresh start for her.

That night, Alice went to bed and slept the whole night. There wasn't a trace of "The Nightmare" anywhere in sight.

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**A/N: Ta da! Chapter Three! I would have updated two days ago, but FF was in fail and wouldn't let me upload my document. *grumbles angrily* Thanks to everyone reviewed the last chapter, didn't get as many of the first chapter, but that's just fine. As long as people are reading. Alice's love interest for this part will be introduced in the next chapter. Hope everyone reacts well to her new lover. *hides* Any guesses as to who it is? Anyone who guesses right on Alice's new love interest will get a preview of the next chapter. Until next time.... -Loveless-

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"**I Believe" English Translation**

_**Hidden where no one else can see**_

_**A whirlpool in my heart of my anxiety**_

_**So many roads to follow**_

_**Not really sure which one I should take**_

_**Anyway, I'm being me**_

_**For so long, I let others take me the way**_

_**Say goodbye to that part of yesterday**_

_**I believe myself**_

_**'Cause I know it's what I need**_

_**Everything begins when I believe within myself**_

_**Oh, I believe in me**_

_**The moment shining light I see**_

_**To the day we think I know that is where I'm gonna go**_

_**I believe**_


	4. It Won't Trouble Me

**Disclaimer: I own some awesome music from the 90s that no one remembers, but alas, I do not own Twilight.

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**Chapter Four- It Won't Trouble Me**

"_**All I want is to feel this way **_

_**To be this close, **_

_**To feel the same **_

_**All I want is to feel this way **_

_**The evening speaks, I feel it say...  **_

_**Nothing's so cold **_

_**As closing the heart when all we need **_

_**Is to free the soul **_

_**But we wouldn't be that brave I know **_

_**And the air outside so soft, confessing everything **_

_**Everything  **_

_**And it won't matter now **_

_**Whatever happens to me **_

_**Though the air speaks of all we'll never be **_

_**It won't trouble me"**_

**-Toad the Wet Sprocket- "All I Want"

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The next morning, Alice skipped downstairs to find Rosalie smiling at her. "Sleep well?" Rosalie asked.

Alice smiled at her. "First time in a while." She sat down at the table and the girls ate breakfast together, chatting about trivial things.

Once again, in the car they sang to silly songs and went into work with smiles on their faces. Kate glared at Alice as she walked in. Normally, Alice would shrink away from her glare and run for the elevator, in fact she almost did. Instead of running, she smiled back at Kate and waved. Kate glared harder, but Alice only laughed.

Alice was in the elevator with a few other people today, but that didn't stop her from dancing to the cheesy elevator music again. She made everyone smile at her silliness and Alice felt a strange feeling about being able to make others smile.

She worked happily all morning, spreading her good mood to her patients and a few other doctors. At lunchtime, she went down to the ER. She went over to the receptionist desk and said to Kate, "Page Rosalie for me."

Kate glared at her and went about her work. Alice slammed her hand down on the desk, causing Kate and a few other people to jump. "Kate, please page Rosalie for me."

"I'm busy." She spat.

A doctor appeared from one of the exam rooms. "Kate! We've warned you about your attitude. What's going on?"

Alice answered, "I came down to meet my friend for lunch, but Kate won't page her for me."

The doctor turned to Kate. "Page them." He stood staring at Kate until she page Rosalie, he smiled at Alice and then was gone. Kate glared at Alice, but was ignored.

Rosalie came into Alice's view, smiling. "Let's go." She said, still smiling. They left the hospital. Today, they decided to eat at Subway.

The girls ordered their sandwiches and stood in line waiting. The woman in front of them was talking on the phone rather loudly, almost yelling at the person on the other line.

"I'm here okay! Just fucking wait a minute! What do you want? I already ordered for you…..Yes, that's what I got you…Well it's not like I can fucking order it and it magically be done, you have to wait. …..If you're going to yell at me, I'm hanging up. ….See, now that's the yelling I was talking about. Hanging up now." The woman closed her phone and crossed her arms, mumbling about a stupid sister.

Alice took a good look at the woman. She was gorgeous and tiny, standing about five-foot-one, but she had on heels that bumped her up to about five-five. Alice still had two inches on the woman. She had bright blue eyes and shining raven hair. She was wearing a dark blue dress and gray leggings. A simple outfit, but her shoes were killer. She had on a pair of black studded heels. Her legs looked incredible and Alice found herself staring.

Rosalie nudged her in the side, smirking. She nodded in the girl's direction. Alice blushed and looked down at her feet. Rose laughed once and leaned around Alice.

She gasped, "Oh my gosh, I love your shoes!" She exclaimed.

The girl in front of them brightened up and smiled. "Thanks, my sister bought them for me as a birthday gift. She's a royal bitch but has great taste in shoes." She said.

Rosalie nodded, "Definitely has great taste, do you know where she got them?"

The girl shook her head, "No, she's very secretive about where she gets her gifts, so she could have gotten them from Paris or something for all I know."

Rosalie smiled, "Well I may have to interrogate your sister to find out. Your shoes are just fucking gorgeous! By the way I'm Rosalie and this is my best friend, Alice."

The girl took Rosalie's hand, "I'm Gianna." She shook Alice's hand and said, "Nice to meet you guys."

Alice smiled at her. Gianna was beautiful, and seemed genuine. Alice was racking her brain for something to say to her, but then she spoke to Rosalie.

"Your ring is beautiful! Your husband has excellent taste!" She exclaimed.

Rosalie held her left hand out to her and said, "Oh no, my husband has awful taste. Alice went with him to pick it out. Thank god for that, otherwise I'd be stuck with some antique ring that someone's grandmother died in."

Gianna and Rose laughed. Alice was about to speak to her when the man behind the counter told her that her food was done. She took her food and paid. She turned around and said, "It was nice to meet you girls." She waved as she walked to the door.

"Nice to meet you, too!" Rose called. She turned back to Alice. "What the hell, Ali? I'm straight and even I know that girl was hot. Why didn't you talk to her?"

Alice took a step back, "First of all, there wasn't anything for me to say and you were handling the conversation pretty well. Second, she was probably straight."

Rosalie scoffed. She turned around and took the food from the guy as he was handing it to her and paid for both of them, since Alice paid yesterday. They ate in Rosalie's car driving back to the hospital, just as they had yesterday.

When they finished, Rosalie led the way inside. As they were walking in Rosalie said, "You know, Emmett comes home tomorrow. You going to be okay without me?" She eyed Alice carefully.

Alice nodded. "Yes, Rose, I'll be fine. I'm moving on remember?" She bumped Rose's hip with her own.

Rose bumped Alice back. "I know, but you can't move on in a day, hon. Takes time."

Alice nodded, "I know, I'll take it slowly, but I'll be fine, I promise." Rosalie opened the door and they went inside. 'I hope so.' She thought to herself.

Alice was about to say bye to Rosalie and head for the elevator, but Rose grabbed her by the arm and said, "Look."

Standing in front of them at the reception desk, was the girl from Subway; Gianna. And she was talking to….Kate?

**A/N: Wee! Now Alice's love interest is in the story. For those of you asking about Leah, don't give up on me yet. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with where this story goes. I have it all planned out and up to chapter eleven written. Stick with me guys. FF is being very stupid lately, so I haven't been able to update sooner. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed, you make my day. :) -Loveless-**


	5. Fail Me Now

**Disclaimer: Don't own Twilight. Thank god for that....

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**Chapter Five- Fail Me Now**

"_**Can you save me**_

_**Will you fail me now**_

_**It's almost over cause you've faded out, again**_

_**Will you break me**_

_**When you're holding me down**_

_**I will escape you and I'll**_

_**I'll push you closer to the ground**_

_**Cause you're the one that's going down**_

_**And I am, stronger now**_

_**Since you crawled away**_

_**You're so far away**_

_**And I am, stronger now**_

_**Since you crawled away, since you crawled away"**_

**-Trust Company- "Stronger"

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**

Alice and Rose stopped dead in their tracks. What the hell? Alice asked herself. Rosalie recovered from the shock first. She grabbed Alice's arm and pulled her forward.

Rosalie started to walk past Gianna and then pretended to notice her. "Gianna?"

Gianna looked up, "Rosalie, right? Hi!" She walked forward and hugged Rosalie. She was quite friendly then. Gianna turned around and smiled brighter. "Alice!" She came forward and hugged Alice as well.

Gianna pulled away. "Girls, this is my sister-"

Rosalie cut her off, "Kate. We've met, actually. I work in the ER here and Alice is a physical therapist."

Gianna slapped her forehead. "I should have known from the outfits. I'm not very perceptive, am I?" She giggled.

Kate had her arms crossed, glaring at Alice. "Gianna, how do you know them?" She demanded.

"We just met over at Subway. They were in line behind me." Gianna answered. "Rosalie complimented my shoes and we've been inseparable ever since." She joked, pulling Rosalie to her side.

Rosalie laughed, but Kate just shook her head. "Whatever. Rosalie, don't you have work to do?"

"Yes, I do actually. So I have to go, see you after work, Ali." Rose waved.

"See you, Rosie." Alice said. She looked from Gianna to Kate and said, "Well, I have work to do as well, I should go." She turned and power-walked toward the elevator. Just as the doors were about to close, a hand grabbed them and Gianna appeared.

"Hey, Alice, I almost missed you." She stepped inside and the doors closed. "I just wanted to see if maybe you and Rosalie would want to go shopping with me and Kate sometime. I'm not really a big shopper, but Kate's a maniac and it would be nice to have a wing-woman there, if you know what I mean." She smiled.

Alice laughed, "I know what you mean. Rosalie is the same way, but Kate and I don't really get along. She's always been mean to me and I can't really figure out why."

Gianna nodded. "Kate's like that to a lot of people. We haven't exactly had the best life," She paused for a moment, before shaking her head. "Nothing to burden you with, though. Kate just has a hard time letting people in and she's a bitch to everyone so that she doesn't have to let anyone in. It's her way of distancing herself. I'll make her promise to be nice, though."

Alice laughed. "Um, okay, sure."

Gianna smiled. "So let me get your number so we can set something up for this weekend." She held out her phone to Alice.

The elevator doors opened up at Alice's floor. She smiled and punched her number in Gianna's phone.

"Just call anytime, I have to get back to work now." She said stepping off the elevator.

Gianna took her phone from Alice and said, "Will do. See you later, Alice!" She called as the elevator doors closed. Alice spent the rest of the day thinking about seeing Gianna again. When Rosalie came up to get her, she smiled broadly.

"Hey there, little vixen." Rosalie said, pulling Alice's earlobe as they walked to the elevator.

Alice laughed. "So guess what?"

Rosalie stopped in her tracks and gasped. She held her hands out and her eyes widened dramatically. "Let me guess, you fell out of the fashion challenged tree and landed in a pair of Uggs?"

Alice rolled her eyes. "Ha ha, very funny, you cum-guzzling semen demon."

Rosalie burst out laughing. "Oh my god, that is golden! So really, what is it?"

They stepped onto the elevator. Alice said, "Well, after lunch when I was getting on the elevator, Gianna came up to me and asked if you and I would be interested in going on a shopping trip with her and Kate. She also asked for my number."

Rosalie smiled, "Do you think she's interested?"

Alice shrugged. "I don't know. My gaydar must be broken because I have no idea."

Rose laughed. "I think she likes you. We'll see, though."

They walked out of the elevator and passed Kate on the way. She gave them a dirty look, but both girls ignored her and walked out to Rosalie's car.

"So do you want to go this weekend?" Rosalie asked.

Alice looked at her. "Go where?" She asked climbing in the car.

Rosalie dropped her hands to her lap. "Shopping with Gianna and Kate."

"Oh. Um, don't you want to spend time with Emmett, though?"

Rosalie waved her hand and pulled out of the parking lot. "Yeah, yeah. Emmett wants to hang out with his boys or something, too. So we can go and I can get something hot to wear for him."

Alice nodded. "Okay, sounds good. Just have to wait for Gianna's call, then."

"You didn't get her number?" Rosalie asked, turning onto the street Alice lived on.

"No, she just asked for mine. That made me nervous enough, Rosie."

Rose giggled. "I understand. Well, let's just hope she calls soon." She turned the car off and the girls went inside. She and Rosalie made dinner together and ate in the living room so that they could watch the Dexter season finale together.

"Oh my god, I can't believe it ended like that!" Rosalie gasped.

"I can't either! Holy shit, what are they going to do next season?" Alice wondered.

Rosalie sighed. "I don't know, but I bet it will be awesome."

Alice opened her mouth to answer, when Rosalie's phone rang. She dropped her plate in the sink. "Oh, that's Emmett, I'm going to go upstairs and talk with him. Be back in a bit, hon." She said, snatching her phone from the table and running upstairs.

Alice smiled. She adored Emmett, but to be honest she was a little jealous of their relationship. Alice wanted someone in her life to love and to love her. Emmett and Rosalie didn't realize how lucky they were to have each other.

Alice's phone started ringing across the room. She knew it was Gianna before she even looked at the caller ID. The only people Alice talked to on the phone were Rosalie and Emmett, and seeing as how they were talking to each other, Alice knew the only other person it could be was Gianna.

She slowly walked over to the table and slowly picked up the phone, not wanting to seem to eager. She looked at the number, she didn't recognize it, not that she expected to.

"Hello?" She asked.

"Alice, it's Gianna." Of course. "How are you tonight?"

"Um, great. Rosalie and I just had dinner and watched Dexter."

"The season finale?" Gianna asked.

"Yep, have you seen it?"

"Oh yeah, fucking mind blowing isn't it?" She laughed.

Alice laughed with her. "Oh yes. Rose and I couldn't believe it."

Gianna was quiet. "This may be none of my business, Alice, but I thought Rosalie was married."

It was Alice's turn to pause. "Yeah, she is. Why?"

"Well, it seems like she lives with you…." Gianna trailed off.

Alice laughed. "Oh, no. Her husband, Emmett is with the FBI and he's gone a lot. Rose doesn't like to be alone, so whenever he's gone she stays with me."

Quietly, Gianna said, "I was hoping she didn't live with you."

Alice was confused. "Why?" She asked.

Gianna was silent again. "Um, never mind, so are you guys busy this weekend?"

"Nope, Rose's husband will be home tomorrow, but Saturday he's spending the day with his boys, so Rose and I are free." Alice said, still wondering why Gianna wanted to know if she and Rose lived together.

At these words, Gianna brightened. "That sounds great! I can't wait to shop with you guys."

"We can't either." The words fell from Alice's mouth before she had the chance to think about what she was saying.

"Great, well let's meet at 8 am for breakfast and go from there."

"Sure thing."

"See you then, Alice." Gianna said.

"See you then, Gianna." Alice answered. She put the phone down on the counter and took a deep breath. Was she finally, really letting go of Leah? She hoped so.

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**A/N: I hope you guys enjoyed that chapter. Things are moving pretty slow, I know this, but I really don't want to rush this story. Especially since part one was so short. **

**I pretty much hate Valentine's Day because it just seems so pointless, so I'm not going to wish you a happy V-Day, but I will wish you a Happy Heartagram Day! Any HIM fans reading this? Their latest album came out last Tuesday and it's all I can listen to this week. (It's called Screamworks: Love in Theory and Practice, you should get it.) **

**Thanks for reading and to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, thank you. And Happy Heartagram Day to you all! (Even if it was yesterday...) -Loveless-**


	6. Tragic Visions Stole My Life

**Disclaimer: Not mine.

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**Chapter Six- Tragic Visions Stole My Life**

"_**Tragic visions slowly stole my life**_

_**Tore away everything**_

_**Cheating me out of my time**_

_**I'm the one who loves you**_

_**No matter wrong or right**_

_**And every day I hold you**_

_**I hold you with my inner child**_

_**I need serenity**_

_**In a place where I can hide**_

_**I need serenity**_

_**Nothing changes, days go by"**_

**-Godsmack- "Serenity"

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**

The next morning, Rosalie was in an especially happy mood. Really, who can blame her? Her husband was returning after two weeks away from her. She bounced around the kitchen, leaving a baffled Alice in her wake. Alice loved seeing her best friend so excited, but she on the other hand, was nervous.

Alice had made a little progress in letting go of Leah, most of it was because of Rose being there for her no matter what time it was. There had been several nights when Alice called Rosalie at 1 AM and Rosalie would haul ass to get to her.

How Rosalie, or Emmett for that matter, had put up with Alice for so long was a mystery to her. She hated that Rosalie and Emmett had sacrificed so much of their time to taking care of Alice.

"I'm sorry, Rose." Alice said without thinking.

Rosalie closed the fridge and turned to face Alice. She asked softly. She had a slight idea what Alice meant, but she had to ask anyway. "Sorry for what, sweetie?"

Alice locked her eyes with Rosalie's and said, "For keeping you away from Emmett. For being a selfish brat and having you come over at all hours of the night just to comfort me. I feel like I'm taking you away from him."

Rosalie opened her mouth, but Alice didn't give her a chance to speak. "Rose, wait. I know you told me that you and Em are happy to help out, but I didn't realize how much you guys to for me. I'm sorry for that." Her tears poured from her eyes then. Rose bit her lip to keep from crying and crossed the kitchen to hug Alice.

"Alice, you went through something indescribably painful, Emmett and I understand that. Don't apologize for being human and feeling strongly for Leah. Em and I know that what you felt for her was real and you can't just let that go in a day." Rosalie said.

"Thank you." Alice whispered.

Rosalie smiled and slapped Alice's behind. "Right, now let's get to work. No more tears, sweet cheeks."

Alice wiped her eyes and looked at Rose. "Sweet cheeks?"

Rosalie nodded. "You been working out on the treadmill or something, your ass is rock hard." She pinched Alice's butt cheek to emphasize her point. Alice jumped and swatted her hand away.

"Let's go, perve before I have you thrown in jail for sexual harassment." Alice teased.

Rose scoffed. "Ha! Like you'd ever do that."

"You're right, I wouldn't." She said. They laughed again before heading out to Alice's car. Alice complained about not being able to drive her car and Rosalie agreed to let her drive. She loved Alice's Cadillac anyway.

When the girls arrived at the hospital, they decided to be nicer to Kate. She may be a major bitch, but Rosalie and Alice liked her sister, so they wanted for all of them to get along.

Alice's morning passed by uneventfully. At lunchtime, she went down to the ER, today Kate paged Rosalie without much of a fight. Alice figured she probably got into trouble over yesterday. That or Gianna talked to her.

"You know, Kate's not so bad when she doesn't have a stick up her ass." Rosalie said as she and Alice walked out to Alice's car.

"Yeah, maybe Saturday won't be so bad." Alice mused. She pulled her keys out of her purse, but stopped when she saw a figure leaning up against her car. It was a big, burly man. Alice knew who it was instantly. "Rose." She said.

Rosalie glanced where Alice had pointed. Her face lit up like a child on Christmas. "Emmett!" She screamed and ran toward him, leaping into his arms. Emmett spun her around while planting sweet kisses on her face. Alice's heart swelled at the sight of them, then she felt even worse about keeping Rosalie from Emmett. No matter what Rose said, Alice felt selfish. She needed to make it up to them somehow.

"Welcome home, Emmett." She said as she approached the couple.

Emmett put Rosalie back on her feet and snatched up Alice. "Ali! I missed you more than I missed Rose!" He said, spinning Alice around.

Rosalie huffed. When Emmett set Alice back on her feet, Rosalie pinched his nipple.

"Ow! Rose what the fuck?" He exclaimed, rubbing his nipple.

Rosalie pinched his other one. "Don't talk to me like that."

Emmett shrank away from her and looked at Alice. "Abusive isn't she? See what I have to live with?" He said seriously. Rosalie slapped him on the shoulder.

"Can we go to lunch?" She asked, opening Alice's passenger door. "Em, you're in the back."

Emmett leaned down to whisper in Alice's ear. "Abusive and bossy."

"I heard that!" Rosalie yelled. Alice laughed at Emmett's expression of terror and shock, then went around to climb in the driver's side.

"So where are we heading?" Alice asked.

Emmett stretched out in Alice's backseat and slapped his stomach. "Somewhere I can get a steak, please."

Rosalie poked his thigh. "Emmett, put your seatbelt on and get your feet off Alice's door!"

Alice whipped her head around. "Emmett McCarty if you got mud on my car I will hang you by your ears and beat you with a wrench until you squeal like a pig, you understand me!?"

Emmett dropped his feet and sat up quicker than lightening. "Yes ma'am." He gulped.

Alice turned around and started the car. Rosalie had her hand over her mouth fighting the giggles caused by Alice's silly threat. Alice took Emmett to a steakhouse like he wanted. During the meal, Emmett told the girls about what he did while he was away. An interesting story to both girls, they loved hearing about Emmett's job.

However, Emmett did not like hearing about Rosalie's job. Anytime she even mentions the ER Emmett books it for the nearest door. Who would have thought the big oaf was squeamish. Alice and Rosalie loved to tease him any chance they got. It was really the only thing they could do for revenge. Emmett is fond of picking the girls up and squeezing the ever-loving shit out of them. The girls get revenge by recapping their day at the hospital.

After they had finished eating, Alice drove them back to the hospital. Emmett got into his Jeep and headed home, promising to see Rosalie later that night. He whispered something dirty in her ear, causing her to blush and Alice laugh at the sight.

The rest of the workday passed quickly for both girls. Alice found herself driving a little faster to get Rosalie back to her house so she could pick up her car and go home. When Alice got home, Rosalie hugged her and promised to see her at work the next day. Then she got into her car and sped home to see Emmett.

Alice ate a small dinner and took a shower before bed. That night, she slept without a dream in her head.

**A/N: Hello again! Hope you all enjoyed this chapter! If anyone has a Twitter, you can follow me if you want, there's a link on my profile. I also set up a Facebook page, so add me as a friend on there. There's a link to that on my profile as well. Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! -Loveless-**


	7. In My Head, In My Heart, In My Soul

**Disclaimer: Not mine.

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**Chapter Seven- In My Head, In My Heart, In My Soul**

"_**Your body may be gone, I'm gonna carry you in **_

_**In my head, in my heart, in my soul **_

_**And maybe we'll get lucky and we'll both live again, **_

_**Well I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, don't think so **_

_**Well that is that and this is this**_

_**You tell me what you want and I'll tell you what you get **_

_**You get away from me, you get away from me **_

_**Collected my belongings and I left the jail**_

_**Well thanks for the time, I needed to think a spell**_

_**I had to think awhile, I had to think awhile"**_

**-Modest Mouse- "Ocean Breathes Salty"

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**

The next day at work, all Rosalie could talk about was she and Emmett's night last night. Alice heard a lot more than she wanted to hear, but she listened nonetheless.

Rosalie and Emmet joined Alice for dinner that night, resulting in an evening of laughter and fun for Alice. She loved what was happening to her. It was almost like she was experiencing life for the first time; laughing with friends without faking it, smiling at someone without them wondering how much you mean that smile. Alice felt like she was finally moving on from Leah.

Saturday morning, Alice was awakened by Rosalie shaking her to death. "We have to go sleepy head! Wake up sweet cheeks!"

Alice opened one eye. "No, I will not help the cookie monster, Ernie."

Rosalie sputtered, "What!? Alice, please lay off the rum, it's doing things to your brain, now get up." She pulled on Alice's big toe.

Alice squirmed and started to kick weakly. "You're a brain." She mumbled.

Rosalie sighed. "Alice, you're making no sense to me, honey." She pulled Alice's pillow from under her head. Alice didn't move. Rosalie smacked her in the stomach with it.

She sighed and dropped the pillow on the floor. "Alice," She whined. "We have to go." Alice shook her head once. Rosalie growled and leapt onto the bed, straddling Alice's waist. "ALICE!" She yelled in her ear.

Alice opened her eyes. "Rosalie? What the fuck are you doing in here?"

Rosalie stared at her dumbfounded. "Are you kidding me? Are you fucking kidding me? It's Saturday, we're shopping with Kate and Gianna remember? Now let's go."

"Oh. Okay." Alice said sitting up. She rubbed her eyes sleepily and said, "Can you get off me?"

"Sure thing." Rosalie said, moving off of Alice and staring at her as Alice walked like a zombie to the bathroom. She missed the door and walked into the bathroom doorway.

"Ow." She groaned and rubbed her forehead, then went into the bathroom and shut the door. Rosalie giggled and rubbed her temples. She loved Alice dearly, but sometimes the girl was infuriating.

Alice came out of the bathroom, still in her pajamas and seemingly stuck in her early morning zombie mode. Rosalie watched her get clothes from the closet and start to undress.

"You're just going to do this with me in here?" Rosalie asked.

Alice shrugged. "Yup, enjoy the show." She took her top off and spun it over her head before throwing it in Rosalie's face.

Rosalie squealed and threw it back at her. "I'll just wait downstairs. Besides, Emmett's down there probably eating you out of house and home."

"Kay." Alice said.

Rosalie left the room and went down to find Emmett. He was, like she thought, eating everything he could find in Alice's kitchen. She sighed and shook her head. "Emmett, stop eating Alice's food."

Emmett chuckled. "It's not like she's going to eat it all. You've seen how skinny she is." Rosalie shook her head again and sat down at the table. Emmett looked up at her, "Do you want anything to eat?"

Rosalie smiled at his offer, and then said, "No, Alice and I are meeting the girls for breakfast." Emmett nodded and went back to eating.

Alice came into the kitchen a few minutes later. "Ready." She said.

"About time." Rosalie said.

"Fuck off." Alice said.

Rosalie smiled, "I wasn't talking to you, I was talking to Emmett about you."

Alice narrowed her eyes and flipped off Rosalie and Emmett, whom were both laughing. Then she smiled and laughed, too.

Rosalie stood up. "I guess we're taking your car, since you have more room in the trunk, not to mention the backseat. Plus, Emmett needs his car, unless you want him hanging around here all day."

Alice clapped her hands once. "Nope, we'll take my car. Let's go. Bye, Emmett." She said, hugging him.

"Bye little Imp." He said. He stood up and kissed Rosalie, then the girls were off. They agreed to meet Kate and Gianna for breakfast at a small diner. When Alice pulled into the parking lot, Kate and Gianna were standing outside the door waiting for them.

Gianna waved enthusiastically as she ran over to Alice's car. "Oh my Christ, this is a nice car!" She exclaimed.

"Thanks." Alice smiled.

Gianna ghosted her hands over the body of the car, not really touching it. Then she turned to Alice and Rosalie. "It's great to see you guys again." She pulled them both in for a hug before she pulled back and said, "Okay, let's go eat. We have a full day ahead of us."

She turned and walked back toward her sister, who was wearing an expression of boredom and irritation. Rosalie and Alice started to walk toward the girls, Alice took that moment to admire Gianna's figure from behind.

She was wearing a simple outfit of jeans, a t-shirt, a red jacket and boots. Alice had on a similar outfit of jeans, t-shirt, boots and a white jacket. Rosalie and Kate were dressed similarly.

Kate didn't look at Rose or Kate as she walked in the diner. Gianna glanced back and gave them an apologetic look, before going in as well.

"Well this is going to be fun." Rosalie muttered and went inside. Alice sighed and followed after Rose.

Once the four girls were sitting at the table, it was awkwardly silent. Kate was still wearing her expression of boredom and irritation, Gianna looked nervous. Rosalie and Alice were just uncomfortable. They ordered their food when the waitress came by, but the awkwardness still didn't pass.

Finally, Gianna cleared her throat. "So, Alice, what do you do at the hospital?"

Alice sat up straighter. "I'm a physical therapist."

Gianna leaned forward a little. "So you help patients after accidents right?"

Alice nodded. "Yeah, something like that." She smiled. Explaining her job to other people was boring, even to her, so usually she just let people guess and leave it at that. She loved her job, but it wasn't the most exciting thing in the world.

The uncomfortable silence loomed over the girls again, but before it could settle around them, Rosalie decided to speak up. "So, Kate, what do you do?"

She smiled. "I manage a store in Fredericksburg called Root Fashion and Aura."

Rose smiled. "Oh wow, sounds hippie-ish."

Gianna laughed. "It's really great. We have a lot of great clothes and we're all about helping people in need as well. Oh! That reminds me! We're having this event in a couple of weeks called Toms Style Your Sole party. We have it every year, it's always a lot of fun."

"What's Style Your Sole?" Alice asked, intrigued.

Gianna brightened again. "Well, people come to the party, buy a pair of Toms shoes, we have Toms will donate a pair to a child in need. You guys should come. It's in about two weeks, think you guys can make it?" She looked hopefully at Alice.

"Yeah, sounds like it'd be a lot of fun. We'll be there. Do you know what time?" Alice asked.

"Normally it's in the evening, probably starting around five pm and ending about eight. I'm so glad you're into this." She said, excitedly.

The waitress came then and handed the girls their food. Kate was avoiding the conversation until Gianna asked her, "Kate, what exactly is your problem with Rosalie and Alice?"

Kate, Rose and Alice almost choked on their food at the same time. Kate took a sip of water and turned to her sister. "What is your problem?" She asked.

Gianna asked, "Well, the other day when I was at the hospital, you were pretty pissed when I talked to the girls. You didn't want to go shopping today with them, and you've had a bug up your ass all morning. So I ask again, what. Is. Your. Problem?"

Kate gaped at her. "None of your business." She went back to eating.

Gianna put her fork down. "It's Rosalie and Alice's business why you're acting like such a bitch to them for no reason."

Alice shifted uncomfortable in her seat. There was the tension again. They finished the rest of the meal in silence. Kate never looked up from her plate, she just ate, ignoring the other three people at the table with her.

When they finished their meal, they left the diner, Kate walking ahead of the other girls. She got into her car and slammed the door. Gianna shot another apologetic look to Rosalie and Alice, who shrugged it off.

A few minutes later, the girls were parking on Main Street. Gianna smiled at Rosalie and Alice. "So, where to first?"

"Isn't the store you work at around here?" Rosalie asked.

"Yup, right over there. Want to start there?" She pointed a little ways down the road.

"Sure." Rosalie said. The four girls entered Root Fashion and Aura. Alice immediately felt more relaxed. She looked around, admiring the simple beauty of the little place. Gianna smiled at Alice as she walked around, looking through the clothes.

"See something you like?" Gianna asked, suddenly behind Alice.

Alice jumped and turned around. "Oh my gosh, you scared me." She said, laughing.

Gianna laughed, too. "Sorry, I saw you looking around and thought you might want to buy something. I can give you a discount." She smiled.

Alice laughed. "Well, Rosalie's birthday is coming up. Last year I bought her a car, I guess this year I could get her a pair of shoes or something."

"You bought her a car?" Gianna asked incredulously.

Alice shrugged. "Yeah, I make a lot of money in my line of work, and I never have anything to spend it on."

"So you buy really awesome gifts for your friends?" Gianna finished.

"Pretty much. All I ever buy is food, I don't have any other family, and so Rosalie and Emmett always get some great gifts for their birthday and Christmas." Alice said.

"What happened to your family?" Gianna asked softly.

Alice froze. She didn't know what to say, so she shook her head. Gianna put her hand on Alice's shoulder. "It's okay, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

Alice smiled sadly. "Thanks." She picked up a pair of light brown heels with blue straps and turned to Rosalie. "Hey Rose," She called. "I'm getting you these for your birthday."

Rosalie laughed and said, "I love them!"

"You better." Alice said, walking to the cashier to pay for the shoes. Gianna followed behind her.

"Give her a discount, Jess." Gianna said to the girl behind the counter.

"Oh no, you don't have to." Alice said. "Really, it's fine."

Gianna held up her hand, "Nonsense."

Alice handed the cashier her black card and turned to Rose, "Are you getting anything, Rosie?"

"Yeah." She answered and walked over with an armful of dresses. "Ali, look how cute some of this stuff is!" She exclaimed, putting the dresses on the counter.

Alice laughed and looked back at Gianna. "Looks like you have a fan."

Gianna laughed. "You guys will definitely love our Toms Style Your Sole event."

Rosalie looked at her, "Oh we're so there." The three girls laughed. Kate rolled her eyes behind them.

The girls Fashion walked out of Root and Aura and paused outside the door. "Where to next?" Rosalie asked.

"I want to go to this art store if you guys don't mind." Alice said.

"Oh Alice, don't drag me into an art store, please." Rosalie begged, sticking out her bottom lip.

Alice sighed. "Okay, then I won't."

"No, wait," Gianna said, "I'll go with Alice and Rose, you and Kate can go to a different store, we'll meet you guys later." She turned to Alice, "You wanna go?" She asked.

"Uh, yeah, sure." Alice said. She and Gianna started down the sidewalk. Rosalie met Alice's eyes for a moment, her eyes filled with disbelief that Alice was leaving her there with Kate. Kate's eyes were filled with a similar emotion. Alice waved to them and kept in step with Gianna.

Rosalie looked back at Kate and waved her hand. "Shall we?"

Kate rolled her eyes and said. "Sure. Let's go." They started towards another store in silence.

Meanwhile, Alice and Gianna were entering Fredericksburg Art Gallery. Alice stopped just inside the door. For a moment, the world fell away from her. She forgot about Gianna.

Her feet moved on their own accord. She slowly wandered around, studying each painting. She froze in her tracks when she reached one of a beautiful Native American woman. There was a light blue angel painted behind her.

Alice stared at the painting, remembering Leah, of course. Even if Alice was moving on from Leah's memory, she knew she could never really forget her. Maybe if she bought this painting it would keep Leah's memory alive for her, just a small reminder of Leah to keep in her life so that she could live happily with someone else. Was Gianna her someone else? Alice hoped so.

"Beautiful isn't it?" A voice asked behind her. Alice turned around to face the source of the voice. It was a man about five-ten with brown eyes and blond hair.

"Yeah, she is." Alice said, turning back to the painting.

"Are you interested in purchasing this piece?" The man asked.

Alice thought for a moment. "Yes, how much?"

"Three-hundred." He answered.

"I'll take it. Is it possible for me to get it today?" She asked.

"Of course. Let me ring it up for you."

Alice handed him her black card and he walked over to his office.

"I thought you said you don't buy things very often." Gianna said, suddenly appearing behind Alice.

"I don't," Alice said, "That painting just….calls to me or something, I can't explain it."

Gianna nodded. "Sometimes you just do things because your heart tells you to. You never know why, it's just a feeling that tells you what to do." She smiled. Alice returned it. She really had found a way to get over Leah: And Gianna was the way.

* * *

**A/N: Some Alice and Rosie silliness in the beginnning. Since everyone said the last chapter was so short, I thought I'd post another chapter for you. I'm sorry I haven't had time to reply to your reviews, I've been a little busy with things, but thanks to everyone who reviewed. I really do love you for it. -Loveless-**


	8. Cleanse My Mind

**Disclaimer: Don't own this.

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**Chapter Eight- Cleanse My Mind**

"_**Well, I've never prayed, **_

_**But tonight I'm on my knees, yeah**_

_**I need to hear some sounds that recognize the pain in me, yeah **_

_**I let the melody shine, let it cleanse my mind , I feel free now **_

_**But the airwaves are clean and there's nobody singing to me now**_

_**No change, I can't change, I can't change, I can't change, **_

_**But I'm here in my mold, I am here with my mold **_

_**And I'm a million different people from one day to the next **_

_**I can't change my mold, no, no, no, no, no"**_

**-The Verve- "Bittersweet Symphony"

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**

Alice shut her front door with her foot and walked into her living room. She put her bags down on the couch, Rosalie followed behind her, doing the same thing. Kate and Gianna walked in, Gianna smiling after enjoying her day with the girls.

Alice turned to face her guests, "So I'm going to put my stuff upstairs, and I'll be back down to cook for everyone. You guys can sit and watch TV if you want, I'll be back." She picked up her things and walked past everyone.

Carefully, she shut her door and put her painting against her bed. Her other bags were dropped onto the floor next to the bed. Alice decided not to spend too much time up here and went downstairs to rejoin the others. On her way down the stairs, she heard Rosalie and Gianna's laughter mixing with another. Alice knew that laugh at once: Emmett.

She heard Emmett's boisterous laughter and him explaining some crude joke. She giggled and shook her head as she walked down the last few steps and into the living room.

Emmett was sitting on the couch with his head thrown back, shaking with laughter. Rosalie was next to him, staring at him like he had escaped from a mental hospital. Kate was sitting in a chair looking scared, Gianna was sitting on the loveseat looking amused and even laughing a little at Emmett's joke. Alice saw a little bit of nervousness in her eyes.

Emmett looked up and said, "Ali!" He drummed his hands on his stomach. "What's for dinner?" He asked happily.

Alice laughed a little. "Hi, Em. Um, I'm gonna make some spaghetti, sound good?"

"Oh yes very good!" He bounced up and down on the couch, shaking Rosalie with him.

She slapped his arm, "Emmett, stop it, you're going to break Alice's couch with your giant ass."

Alice laughed. "I'm going to start dinner now."

Gianna jumped up. "I'll help you."

Kate grabbed her arm. "Gianna, what the hell? Don't leave me here alone."

Gianna jerked her arm away from her sister, "Grow up Kate and pull that stick out of your ass. You might actually have fun."

Kate glared at her as she and Alice left the room. "You know, you don't have to help me." Alice said, entering the kitchen.

"No, I want to help." Gianna said.

"Okay, then." Alice smiled and started gathering the things they needed.

"So Alice," Gianna started once the food was cooking. "Have any pets?"

Alice smiled. "No, just Emmett." They both laughed.

"He's quite a character, that's for sure." Gianna said.

"You can say that again."

Gianna smiled. "How long have he and Rose been married?" She asked, stirring the spaghetti sauce.

"Just over two years." Alice said.

"Oh, were you a bridesmaid?" Gianna asked.

"Maid of honor actually."

Gianna turned to her, "So you and Rosalie are close, then?"

"Oh yeah. Like sisters almost."

"How long have you known her?" Gianna asked.

Alice thought. "I don't know exactly how long, to be honest. For as long as I can remember we were just always best friends, you know. I can't remember a single part of my life that Rosalie wasn't there for."

"That's nice. So you don't have any siblings, do you?"

"No, why?" Alice asked.

"Well, I was just thinking that I could say the same thing about Kate and me. We used to be so close, best friends, inseparable. Then one day it all just….changed." Gianna said.

"What do you mean, changed?" Alice asked softly. Gianna looked down at her hands. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." Repeating the line Gianna said to her earlier.

Gianna looked up and smiled. "Thanks, Alice. Maybe one day, we'll be able to tell each other everything, right?"

Alice smiled back. "Sure. One day." She turned around to put the garlic bread in the oven. Alice hoped she could trust Gianna enough to tell her even a little about her past and her family, but she wasn't sure if she could. Alice had a lot of demons, a lot of secrets and she couldn't just tell those to the first girl who comes along and bats her eyelashes.

Gianna watched Alice carefully. She could see it in Alice's eyes that she had a deep secret and was reluctant to trust anyone. She guessed that Alice had been hurt by a past lover. Gianna wanted to trust Alice, and let her in so that she knew all of Gianna's secrets. In return, she wanted Alice to trust her and tell her everything. She wanted to help Alice, to show her she could love again, despite how badly she'd been hurt before.

The girls prepared the rest of dinner without speaking much, just a few words when they needed something for the food. Alice set the table in the dining room, and then the five of them sat down at the table to eat.

Dinner consisted of Emmett telling crude stories and the girls choking from laughing. Kate even laughed more than once, but tried to hide it, even though Gianna, Alice and Rose saw her laugh.

After the meal was over, Rosalie and Emmett volunteered to wash dishes. Kate went outside for "some air" so Gianna and Alice were left alone in the living room.

"Alice, this may seem a little forward or inappropriate, but I have to ask this." Gianna said, nervously.

"What?" Alice asked, setting her empty coffee mug on the table and leaning forward.

Gianna took a deep breath. "Are you…um." She pressed her lips together. She exhaled and said, "Let's try this again. Are you interested in women?"

Alice blinked. "Yeah, why do you ask?"

Gianna bit her lip. "Well, I was wondering, if maybe you wanted to….go out. With me. On a date." She smiled a little at the end.

"Oh." Alice breathed. "I don't know if that's such a good idea." Alice said before she could stop herself.

"Why not?" Gianna asked, confused.

Honestly, Alice didn't know why she said no. She liked Gianna, so why couldn't she go out with her?

Gianna surprised Alice by asking the very question she was thinking. "I thought you liked me?" Traces of anger were visible on her face.

"I do, but that's the problem." Alice said quickly.

Gianna sat back and looked at her. "Okay, Alice. I'm lost here, explain to me please what's going on inside your head?"

Alice bit her lip. "I'm not sure how to explain it, I do like you, but I'm just scared."

"Of what?" Gianna asked softly.

"Getting hurt. I've been with plenty of people in the past few years, but that was just sex. I was lonely and looking for comfort in anyway possible, but I actually like you. I don't want to get hurt again." Alice explained, her eyes moistening with tears.

Gianna took her hand. "Hey." Alice looked up at her, the intensity in her eyes scared Alice a bit. It was intense….determination? Alice guessed. "I will never hurt you, Alice. I only want to save you." She squeezed Alice's hand and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Thanks." Alice smiled.

"Anytime." Gianna smiled back. She cleared her throat. "Just so you know, I'm not giving up on you, though. Count on it." She winked.

Alice blushed and said, "I'm looking forward to your attempts."

**A/N: So I finally got around to posting pics on my profile of Alice's haircut, the cars, Gianna and the painting that Alice bought in the last chapter if you're interested in seeing any of those. Sorry I haven't had time to respond to reviews or update before now, I've been sick and had some family issues. Basically: life got in the way. Hope you all like this chapter. All four of you. :) -Loveless-**


	9. Ageless Heart

**Disclaimer: Do not own this.**

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**Chapter Nine- Ageless Heart**

"_**See these tears so blue**_

_**An ageless heart **_

_**That can never mend**_

_**These tears can never dry**_

_**A judgment made**_

_**Can never bend**_

_**See these eyes so green**_

_**I can stare for a thousand years**_

_**Just be still with me**_

_**You wouldn't believe what I've been thru**_

_**You've been so long**_

_**Well, it's been so long**_

_**And I've been putting out fire**_

_**With gasoline**_

_**Putting out fire with gasoline"**_

**-David Bowie- "Cat People" (Putting Out the Fire)

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**

Alice waved to Gianna as she got into Kate's car. Alice went back inside and shut the door. She went into the kitchen and finished cleaning up. She also tidied up the living room before retreating upstairs.

Once inside the safety of her bedroom, she went over to her bed and knelt down. Carefully, she took the painting she'd bought out of its box. She propped it up against her bed and stared at it.

For what seems like hours to Alice, she studied every line and trace of the painting. In her mind she was also studying every line and trace of her memory of Leah's face. Every beautiful, flawless curve, every smooth line that shaped her face when she smiled. Her hard expression when she was telling Alice she couldn't go with her. Her worried expression when Alice seemed to be falling apart before her very eyes. Leah's scared expression Alice had witnessed so many times- the first time Leah came into her house, when Charlie showed up, when Mrs. Merriam came to check on Alice, and in the truck before she pushed Alice out.

Alice shook her head quickly and jumped up. No, no, no, she thought, I can't think about her anymore. Alice picked up the painting and took it downstairs. She placed it on top of an end table in the living room. She smiled at the painting and then went back upstairs.

She needed to wash herself, to cleanse herself of the memories she tried so hard to shut out. Alice undressed while walking to the bathroom and jumped in as quickly as possible.

The hot water flowed from the shower and down Alice's body like a million tiny rivers. Alice focused on purging Leah's memories from her brain. Instead, she focused on Gianna.

She thought about Gianna's shining blue eyes, her warm smile, her soft features, how small she was next to Rosalie, the way she was so close with her sister, but still didn't put up with any of Kate's shit. And most of all, the way she made Alice feel again- warm, hopeful and whole.

Maybe it was wrong of Alice to think of Gianna in such ways when she had just refused a date with her, but Alice couldn't bring herself to feel guilty at the moment. She only wanted to forget Leah. Whether it was the shower or thoughts of Gianna, Alice didn't know, she only knew it worked. When she stepped out of the shower, it was Gianna on her mind.

Alice wrapped a towel around her and padded into her bedroom. She went straight for her phone that was on the table next to her bed. She looked at the time, ten forty-seven. She bit her lip and thought for a moment, was it too late to call Gianna?

"Fuck it." She said and opened her phone. She quickly found Gianna's number and chose it. She put the phone to her ear and waited.

"Hello?" Gianna answered.

"Hi, it's Alice. I'm sorry to call so late, I just wanted to talk to you about something." Alice said nervously.

"Oh, well what do you need to talk about?"

"I uh, I changed my mind." Alice said confidently.

"About what?" Gianna asked.

"I'd like to go out with you, for lunch, tomorrow or something." Alice fidgeted with the corner of the towel that was wrapped around her body.

"Oh, Alice, that sounds great! Where do you want to go?" Gianna asked, her mood brightening.

"Anywhere you want." Alice laughed nervously.

"Okay, how about this place in Fredericksburg called Ryan's? It's really nice and has excellent food." Gianna suggested.

"That sounds wonderful, should we meet at about one?"

"Sure thing. I'll see you then."

"See you tomorrow. Night, Gianna." Alice said, smiling into the phone.

"Night, Alice." Gianna said and hung up.

Alice set her phone down slowly and thought about what she'd just done. She acted in the moment, out of pure spontaneity. She had never done that before with anyone, except Leah. Alice smiled so big it scared herself. She wiggled her hips a bit and then pulled the towel off her body, then climbed into bed, wet and naked. It was one of the best nights sleep she'd gotten in a while.

The next morning, Alice hopped out of bed, and danced into her bathroom. She combed out her short hair and slipped a headband on.

She went into her room and slipped into a white sundress and went downstairs. She ate breakfast and then spent most of the morning sitting around the house. The painting sitting on the end table kept drawing Alice's attention.

It always made her think of Leah, and she didn't want to think of her. She was going on a date with Gianna in just a couple of hours, the last thing she wanted to think of was Leah.

Around twelve-thirty, Alice went up to her room and found a pair of flip-flops to wear with her sundress. She checked her appearance in the mirror and decided not to wear make-up, after all she was a rare natural beauty and didn't need it.

She climbed into her Cadillac and drove to the restaurant Gianna chose. She parked her car and calmly walked inside. She gave her name to the hostess, who led her outside where Gianna was sitting.

"Hey!" Gianna chirped when Alice came into her view. She stood up and hugged Alice tightly.

"Hey yourself." Alice smiled at her. They took their seats across from each other. Gianna looked simply stunning in a light blue sundress.

"I'm really glad you called me last night." Gianna said, honestly.

"Me, too." Alice admitted.

They ordered their food and chatted lightly while they were waiting. When the food came, Gianna finally asked the question that had been on her mind since the night before. "So, what's her name?"

Alice dropped her fork. "What do you mean?"

Gianna wiped her mouth with a napkin and said, "The girl who broke your heart. Last night you told me you liked me, but you were afraid of getting hurt again. Anyone who feels that way usually had their heart broken in a pretty big way. You want to tell me about it?" She asked carefully.

Alice bit her lip. "Um, I'm not sure."

"You don't have to tell me now. But one day I want to know everything about you." Gianna said, smiling.

"I have no doubt in my mind that I'll tell you everything." Alice promised, smiling back.

**A/N: Here's an update for all two of my readers. :) Hope you like it. Normally I'm never one to ask for reviews, but I'd REALLY love to know how you guys are liking this, so please let me know. -Loveless-**


	10. Venom Inside of Me

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of this.

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**Chapter Ten- Venom Inside of Me**

"_**I know that I can stand my head high**_

_**Forget not where I fall**_

_**Still I find why and reason**_

_**Yet that conflict still filling me**_

_**Mistrust venom inside of me**_

_**I am not the man that you see**_

_**Just look inside me**_

_**Trust in me the way I trusted you**_

_**I know we could have done this together**_

_**If you believed in me like I believed in you**_

_**My heart would be forever in your hands"**_

**-All That Remains- "Forever in Your Hands"

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**

After finishing their meal, Alice and Gianna decided to take a walk through the little town. As they strolled past the stores they had shopped in yesterday, Gianna gently grabbed Alice's hand. To her surprise, Alice didn't pull her hand away. She just looked down at their entwined hands and smiled a little.

Gianna smiled brightly at Alice's reaction. She was so worried that it would be too forward of her. She and Alice had been walking for a few minutes, in perfect silence. She enjoyed the easiness between them, but there was so much she didn't know about Alice.

Kate had told her about Rosalie and Alice many times. She just always described them as "the two bitches from work". Gianna wasn't swayed by Kate's harsh words. She knew her sister wasn't the easiest person to get along with and anyone who didn't bend to her every command was labeled with a derogatory nickname.

All the times that Kate had told her about Rosalie and Alice, she just listened and tried to sympathize with her sister. However, now that she had met the girls, it was harder to sympathize. She really liked Rosalie and Alice, she would be happy to call either of them friends.

Driven by her curiosity to know everything about Alice, Gianna cleared her throat, and then asked, "So Alice, what do you like to do for fun?" As soon as the words left her lips, she knew it probably wasn't the best question to ask. Alice's steps faltered a bit and the smile left her face. Even her grip on Gianna's hand tightened a little bit.

Alice opened her mouth to answer, but paused. What did she do for fun? She found herself wandering. She thought back to the last few months; between working and trying to avoid "The Nightmare", she didn't really have any time for fun.

Realizing Gianna was waiting for an answer, Alice said, "Well, I like cooking, Painting, when I have the inspiration. I used to make jewelry. Nothing fancy, just braiding yarn or beading."

Gianna giggled. "Sounds interesting."

Alice scoffed. "Yeah, interesting. Cooking, painting and making jewelry, I'm a real party animal."

Gianna laughed. "I think it makes you interesting, artistic, creative. I'd like to see your stuff sometime, if you're willing to show me, that is." She looked at Alice out of the corner of her eye.

Thinking it over, Alice nodded a bit. "Sometime, maybe. So what do you like to do for fun?"

Gianna laughed again. "I'm what you would call an adrenaline junkie, skydiving, bungee jumping, base-jumping, those kinds of things. Last year for my birthday, my sister and I went to Jamaica and went cliff jumping off the limestone cliffs of Negril's West End. It was a lot of fun. I've been to numerous places and went on all kinds of roller coasters." She paused and looked over at Alice. "Do you like that kind of thing?"

Alice shrugged. The only crazy thing she'd ever done was fall in love with a girl and tried to run away with her. Not that she could tell Gianna that, though. "Not really, I work too much for that kind of thing."

Gianna nodded. "Would you be interested in trying something fun like that? With me, I mean?"

Alice stopped and looked at the girl next to her. Gianna's heart started to beat faster, had she crossed the line?

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked. It's too soon. Let's forget about it." Gianna said.

"No, it's fine. I actually would be interested in trying something like that someday. I'm glad you asked. I think I've been living too safe for the past few years, I need some major excitement in my life." Alice told her.

Gianna smiled brightly. "That's excellent!" She almost blurted out that they should go next weekend, but bit her tongue in time. She didn't want to make Alice uncomfortable.

Since Alice seemed to be in a chatty mood, or at least a question-answering mood, she decided to ask another question. "So have you ever read a book that changed your life? Or at least, gave you a new outlook on life? Made you really think about the way your life was going?"

Without hesitation, Alice answered, "The Outsider by H.P. Lovecraft."

Gianna replied, "That's not a book, that's a short story."

Alice smiled, "I know, but the very first time I read that story it made me think about a lot of things. The main character is a beast, a monster, but he doesn't even know it. Then when he finds out what he is, he runs away. It just made me think about going through your life, thinking that you are a good person or just a human and then you realize you're actually a monster. It scares me that you can believe that you are good, and then have people running away from you screaming because you're actually a monster." Alice finished, looking down at her feet, a sad look in her eyes.

**(A/N: For the record, I am a HUGE Lovecraft fan, but this is not my interpretation of "The Outsider". I asked LovelessClearwaterMeraz for help on this part and she gave me this, as "The Outsider" is her favorite Lovecraft story, that is her interpretation of the story.)**

Gianna watched Alice's features set in concentration. It made her think about what Alice was saying. Out of curiosity, she asked, "Do you believe you're a monster, Alice?"

The girls turned a corner while Alice thought over the question. "No, not a monster, per say. I just," She paused; unsure of how much she should tell Gianna.

Gianna waited patiently and squeezed Alice's hand as a reassurance. She wanted Alice to trust her, she wanted to save Alice, to show her there was still some love in the world.

Alice started again, "My father was a preacher. Both of my parents were Christians and drove their religious beliefs into my brain. Anything that wasn't in the bible was a sin. My parents would only let me wear dresses that went almost to my ankles. I wasn't allowed to wear jeans. I followed their strict religious beliefs all my life. That was until I was seventeen, I fell in love with a girl."

She paused again, she was certainly not about to tell Gianna the whole story, so she needed to edit a little. Gianna waited until Alice was ready.

"It's the ultimate sin, in my parent's eyes. I couldn't tell them anything about her. I just didn't understand how our love, that was so pure could be something so wrong in their eyes. How could anyone condemn us for being together?" Alice wondered aloud.

"What happened?" Gianna asked without thinking.

"We ran away together." Alice said. She knew she couldn't tell Gianna everything now, so she just simplified everything with, "Except, she didn't make it. We had an…accident and she died."

"Oh my god." Gianna gasped, clapping her hand over her mouth. "Alice, I didn't know. I'm so sorry. I wouldn't have asked you to talk about it if I'd known that happened." She took her hand away from her mouth and placed it on Alice's wrist.

Alice shook her head. "It's okay. I need to talk about it with someone, besides Rosalie that is. She knows the whole story."

Gianna's eyes started to fill with tears. She couldn't imagine having to go through what she had gone through. Alice's strength showed through in the way she told Gianna the story.

She could sense that telling the story had taken a lot of energy out of Alice, so she decided it was time for their lunch date to end. "Why don't we head back now? It's getting late."

"Sure." Alice nodded, following Gianna back to their cars.

When they reached the parking lot of the restaurant, Gianna pulled her keys from her purse. "So, do you want to go out again sometime, maybe dinner tomorrow night? Oh! You can come over to my house and I'll cook." She suggested.

"You don't have to," Alice started.

Gianna held up her hand, "No, you cooked for me last night, it's my turn." She smiled.

"Okay, then. Around five, good for you?"

"That's perfect. This time, my sister won't be there to bring you down, though." Gianna smiled again.

Alice nodded. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow night."

"Yeah, tomorrow." Gianna said. Quickly, she leaned up and kissed Alice's cheek. "See you then." She turned away and walked to her car.

Alice stood there, watching her walk away, before getting into her own car. On her drive home, Gianna thought about her date with Alice.

She couldn't believe she was doing this. She'd never been with a woman before, but Alice was different. Something about her drew Gianna in, made her want to know everything about her.

The question is: Would Alice trust her enough to let her in?

When Alice returned home, she went straight up to her room and sat on her bed. She couldn't believe that she had just told Gianna so much about her life. Granted, she had left out the parts where Leah was raped, and she murdered two men. Not to mention the part where Alice tied up her Sunday school teacher, stole her money and her car so that she and Leah could get away only to have Leah murdered before her very eyes.

Had she finally found someone she can actually trust besides Rosalie? Alice was ready to love again. After ten years of loveless sex, lonely nights and empty connections, she was more than ready to love someone with her whole heart. This time, the situation would be different. Her love wouldn't be ripped away from her like Leah was.

Alice flopped back on her bed and rolled over on her side. Was Gianna what she really wanted? She thought about the way that Gianna made her feel inside. Gianna could be _just_ what she wanted.

* * *

Miles away from Alice, in the town of Amherst, Maine, a dark blue Volkswagen Jetta pulled up in front of a charming white two story home. The driver inside looked around noticing a black Toyota Camry in the driveway. The grass was a bright green and freshly cut; the flowers in the garden were blooming and beautiful on this early spring day. A white cross was painted on the black mailbox and a crucifix was mounted on the front door. It was a house fit for a preacher.

The door to the Jetta opened and Leah Clearwater stepped out. She shut her door and took a deep breath. Timidly, she walked up the driveway, careful not to mess up the grass. She reached the steps and took another deep breath before rapping on the door.

She waited, hearing soft approaching footsteps before the door swung ajar. She pasted a smile on her face and took in the woman before her.

Leah's heart almost broke right there, the woman before her was the mother of her former lover, Alice Brandon. She knew that from the color of her eyes and her bone structure. It was exactly the same as Alice's.

Her smile faltered a little when the woman exhaled impatiently. Leah blinked and said, "Hi, I'm Leah Clearwater. I was a friend of Alice's from high school and I was wondering if you knew where she was."

The woman stared blankly at her. "How did you find me?" She finally asked.

"Some friends of yours from back home pointed me here," she answered.

Mrs. Brandon sighed. "Alice isn't here. I don't know where she is, in fact." That seemed to be all the information she was willing to give Leah.

Leah nodded slowly, "Do you know of anyone who may know of where she is? It's important that I find her."

Mrs. Brandon's eyes flashed and she began to probe Leah with her sharp eyes. "Clearwater, was it?" She asked, Leah nodded in confirmation and Mrs. Brandon continued, "I don't remember Alice ever mentioning you before, although I do remember you committing a terrible crime against some poor defenseless men in a bar. Maybe I should call the police and inform them of your whereabouts," she threatened.

Leah gave her an uneasy smile, "With all due respect Mrs. Brandon, you don't know what you're talking about. And I did my time for what I did that night."

Mrs. Brandon didn't blink. "Good-bye, Ms. Clearwater." She slammed the door and went back inside. Leah was sure that Mrs. Brandon would dislike her regardless of her past.

Leah had served ten years in prison for the murder of the two men who had raped her. She had only just recently been released. She'd been able to see her mom and brother while she was in prison, always praying for Alice to come visit her.

While in prison, she'd had the bullet taken out of her leg and she'd had some physical therapy. She walked with a slight limp, but that was all. She'd asked her mother to track down Alice, but to no avail. She knew Alice was alive, somewhere out there, but she just didn't know where.

She drove half the night, and was far away from Amherst before her eyelids started feeling heavy. She knew she didn't have enough money for a hotel room, she'd spent almost all she had on gas. She'd been making money anyway she could, and always seemed to have just enough for food and gas.

She pulled off the road and parked in a Wal-Mart parking lot. They were open twenty-four hours so no one would think her being there so late was odd.

Leah climbed into the backseat and switched on the light that was over her head, illuminating the car in a soft yellow light. She reached into her bag and pulled out her wallet. Looking inside, she counted her money, she had just over fifty dollars. She put her money back inside and reached behind her driver's license.

She pulled out her picture of Alice. It was the one thing she had managed to keep of hers. She had stolen it from Alice's father's study and kept it in her pocket the day they made their escape.

Leah traced Alice's smiling face with her fingertips. "Alice," she breathed, "where are you?"

She put the picture back into its place and put the bag on the seat to use as a pillow. During the night, it began to rain. Leah's mind went back to the night she met Alice, she was wet from the rain, blood soaked and tear-stained, yet Alice welcomed her into her home. Apprehensively, at first, but they shared something beautiful during those few precious hours they had together.

After over an hour of failing to sleep, Leah reached between the seats and turned the key in the ignition so she could listen to a little music. She flipped through the stations; her heart skipped a few beats when she heard Waylon Jennings singing "Luckenbach, Texas" on some country station.

Something inside Leah clicked. She didn't know what it was, and why it had taken so long, but right there at that moment she knew where Alice was.

* * *

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter, you have given me a boost in encouragment. :) Thanks! A shout out to O. N. Labbit for her assistance. The part from Leah is dedicated to her. By the way, I know I didn't explain everything about Leah, but I will do so in good time. Thanks again guys. -Loveless-**


	11. Your Eyes Have Lost Their Light

**Disclaimer: Not mine!!**

* * *

**Chapter Eleven- Your Eyes Have Lost Their Light**

"_**I hold your hand in mine**_

_**I hold your hand and you're so lonely**_

_**Oh so lonely**_

_**Your eyes have lost their light**_

_**Your eyes have lost their light and you're empty**_

_**Oh my God you're so empty**_

_**(I'm in love with you)**_

_**You are my heaven tonight**_

_**(I'm in love with you)**_

_**You are my heaven tonight**_

_**Trying to find the heart you hide**_

_**Trying to find the heart you hide in vain**_

_**Oh in vain**_

_**And you're my haven in life**_

_**And you're my haven in death, Baby**_

_**Life and Death my Darling"**_

**-HIM- "Heaven Tonight"

* * *

**

Alice recapped her date with Rosalie over breakfast. She was so happy for her best friend, finally moving on and finding love. Emmett was also extremely excited to hear about Alice's date, but for much different reasons.

When they'd left, Emmett gave her a bear hug and a teary eyed thank you. Alice and Rosalie were confused, but they guessed it was something to do with Emmett's fantasy of two women together, so they ignored him when he dramatically leapt off Alice's front steps and whooped loudly. Sometimes he was just a big child.

After Emmett and Rosalie left, Alice spent the rest of her day cleaning her house and trying to find an appropriate outfit to wear to Gianna's that night. She settled on a green silk blouse and a black mini skirt. She slid her feet into a pair of green flats, and then went into the bathroom.

She applied minimal makeup and ran her hands through her short hair just enough so it stood up. Alice stepped back and looked at herself in the mirror. Satisfied with her appearance, she turned and left the bathroom. She grabbed a light sweater as she passed through her bedroom and then went downstairs.

On her way to Gianna's, she chewed lightly on her thumbnail due to her nerves. She and Gianna seemed to get along wonderfully, but there was so much Gianna didn't know, so much she couldn't know.

Alice didn't like having to edit when she spoke with Gianna, but she didn't have much of a choice.

When she arrived at Gianna's, she parked behind Gianna's dark blue Pontiac GTO. Alice shut her door and eyed Gianna's car appreciatively. Nice car, she thought as she walked to the front door.

She took just a minute to admire Gianna's home. The place Gianna called home was a beautiful white house, with a little garden on either side of the front steps. The garden was full of red, white, yellow and purple flowers that looked breathtaking against the yellow and orange light spilling from the Texas sunset.

Gianna's door swung open as Alice was walking up the steps. She smiled brightly and said a cheerful "Hello." Alice paused briefly to once again admire the view. Gianna was wearing a halter-top dress that was a screaming red color. It fell just above her knees. She had on black strappy gladiator heels that added an extra five inches to her height of five-two.

Gianna noticed Alice looking her up and down, so she leaned against the door and crossed her legs at her ankles. "See something you like?" She asked playfully.

Alice blushed and looked away. Gianna laughed and pulled her inside by her hand. "I'm going to check on dinner, make yourself at home." Gianna said, waving her hand to the living room. Then she strutted into the kitchen, knowing full well that Alice was watching her walk away.

Shyly, Alice walked into the living room and slowly looked around. Gianna's house was beautifully decorated. Her couch was black leather with a matching armchair next to it. There was a white coffee table in the center of the room. Pictures of Gianna were hanging on the walls. In some, Kate was with her. A few were of Gianna with two older people that Alice assumed were her parents.

There were hardwood floors all throughout. A bright purple rug was in the middle of the living room underneath the coffee table. It added personality to the otherwise sophisticated room.

Alice sat down on the couch and continued looking around, analyzing the room. When she leaned forward on the couch, she turned her head and looked down the hall to her left. When she turned her head to the right, she could see somewhat into the kitchen. She could see the refrigerator and she could hear Gianna's heels clicking on the floor as she prepared their meal.

A sudden scratching sound caused Alice to jump a little. She paused and listened closely. There it was again. It was coming from down the hall to her left. There was a soft whining.

"That's my dog, Manowar." Gianna said, appearing in the doorway of the kitchen. "He's a Rottweiler. I had to put him in his room. He likes people."

"His room?" Alice asked, smiling.

Gianna nodded. "Yeah, I have this big house to myself. My room is upstairs and I have all these empty rooms," she said, sitting down in the armchair next to the couch. "So, I decided to give Manowar his own room." She laughed a little. "Do you want to meet him? He's my baby."

"Uh, sure." Alice said. She followed Gianna to the room the scratching was coming from.

Gianna smiled as she opened the door. Alice laughed as she took in the room. There was a blue doggy bed in the corner with various dog toys strewn across the floor. Manowar was a big dog, coming almost to Alice's knees. He was solid black with one brown paw. His collar was blue, to match his doggy bed.

Alice reached her hand out to Manowar, who sniffed her hand, then licked it several times. "Hello, Manowar." Alice cooed. The dog barked loudly, scaring Alice a bit. She and Gianna laughed.

Alice picked up a little squeaky toy that used to be in the shape of a cat. She squeezed it. Manowar's head snapped to the toy. Alice shook it a little and tossed it across the room. The large dog scrambled clumsily after the toy.

Gianna and Alice stood in the doorway for a few minutes watching Manowar chew on the toy. Finally, Gianna said, "Dinner's ready. If you want to eat."

"Sure." Alice said. She left the room, Gianna shut the door behind them and they went into the kitchen. Alice washed her hands thoroughly at the sink. She assisted Gianna carrying food into the dining room.

Gianna politely pulled out Alice's chair for her, smiling coyly. Alice smiled at her in return before sitting down. She wished she had thought to pull out Gianna's chair for her. They got their food and ate in almost silence, but it wasn't awkward. It was an easy, comfortable silence.

Alice helped Gianna wash dishes, despite her protests. Then Gianna poured them a glass of red wine and they went into the living room.

Gianna set her glass of wine on the table, then leaned down and took her shoes off. "I love these shoes, but my goodness they kill my feet after while," she said laughing a little. She curled her feet under her and looked at Alice.

"Are those your parents?" Alice asked, pointing to a picture on the wall behind Gianna.

"Yes, that's them," she answered. "Eleazar and Carmen Denali. My father, Eleazar is a math teacher. He teaches sixth grade math, so I never had much of a problem in school. My mother is a dance teacher. My sister and I took ballet when we were younger. Kate stopped after we graduated from my mother's school. I did gymnastics for a while. I've always been pretty active. In middle school I played softball and basketball. In high school, I played tennis and basketball. And I ran track." She smiled at Alice.

Alice nodded. "So you keep in shape still?"

Gianna nodded. "Yeah, I run in the mornings before work." Well, that's obvious, Alice thought. She had known Gianna was a runner from the first time she saw her. Her body was long and lean, despite her small height. She didn't have an ounce of fat on her. Alice had only been able to get a view of Gianna's toned arms and legs. Gianna had round, beautiful and natural breasts and a toned firm bottom. She could only imagine what the rest of her body looked like.

"So what's your favorite movie?" Gianna asked suddenly.

Alice thought a minute. "Well, anything directed by Quentin Tarantino."

Gianna nodded. "I can understand that." She laughed a little.

"He's borderline amazing," Alice said laughing.

"Oh yeah, Jackie Brown is a masterpiece."

At the mention of her favorite Tarantino movie, Alice perked up and Gianna noticed her sudden excitement. "Jackie Brown is so underrated. I like it more than Pulp Fiction," Alice said, then paused. "Well, sometimes."

Gianna laughed. "I just remember the first time I saw Reservoir Dogs. I think I was about fourteen, my older cousin Tanya was staying with us for the summer. She had brought it with her and one day while my parents were at work, we watched it. I was in shock when it was over, it was so amazing." She took another sip of wine.

"That's definitely in my top ten favorite movies," Alice said, also taking a sip of wine. Gianna watched her from the corner of her eye, she enjoyed having Alice talk so freely to her.

"So do you like any romance movies?" Gianna asked.

Alice made a face. She didn't want to admit that she was often jealous of the girls in romance movies because they could have such a perfect ending to a love story, while hers ended before it began. "Not so much. I'm more of a horror, action kind of girl. I'm all about explosions, shoot outs, torture!" She laughed heartily. "Rosalie likes all the girly movies so I've seen a fair number of them because of her."

"What has she made you watch?" Gianna asked.

Alice sighed exaggeratedly. Either Gianna's presence or the wine was making her loosen up. She could feel herself letting go and relaxing for the first time in a long time. Then she answered Gianna's question, "Well, 'Love, Actually', 'Chasing Liberty', 'The Notebook.'" Alice rolled her eyes.

Gianna laughed. "Not a fan of 'The Notebook'?" She teased.

Alice twisted a lock of her short hair around her finger. "No," she dragged the word out. "Not at all. It was pretty boring, actually."

"I know what you mean," Gianna said. "Kate made me watch it with her. She actually cried. I laughed at her. She hit me in the arm." She and Alice laughed easily together.

"Do you want to watch a movie?" Gianna asked. "It's only eight, and I'm having so much fun with you. I'm not sure I'm ready to let you go just yet."

Alice smiled at Gianna's confession. "Sure, what did you have in mind?" Alice asked.

"Comedy okay for you? Kate has this thing when she goes to a store she'll buy a movie, watch it and then give it to me. She's not that much of a movie fan."

Alice laughed. "That's kind of weird."

"Yeah, I know," Gianna said, standing up. She went over to the huge collection of DVD's she had next to the television and started looking through them.

"How about…." She trailed off, scanning through before selecting one and holding it up to Alice. "The Hangover?"

"Sure," Alice nodded.

"Have you seen it?" Gianna asked, putting the DVD in and turning on the TV.

"Not yet. Emmett and Rosalie saw it when it came out, and they loved it," Alice said.

Gianna took her seat next to Alice, sitting a little closer than she was before. She casually leaned over Alice and switched off the lamp next to the couch. Alice breathed in Gianna's sweet scent, a mixture of vanilla, some floral scent she didn't recognize and a slight trace of wine. She closed her eyes and savored the wonderful scent that seemed to imprint itself on her brain.

Gianna started the movie and sat back against the couch. Her arm brushed against Alice's, causing Alice to smile a little. To Alice's pleasant surprise, 'The Hangover' was quite funny.

When they were in high school, Rosalie always told Alice that when she went on a date to always see a comedy movie or go to a comedy show. A sense of humor is essential in a future partner, so by seeing a comedy movie or a stand up comedian, you know what they find funny.

Gianna and Alice's laughter mixed together during the movie. When it was over, Gianna looked at the clock. "Oh wow, it's after eleven. Do you have to work tomorrow?" She asked Alice.

"Yes, six o'clock sharp," she said. "I should go, now." She stood up. Gianna walked to the door with her.

"We should have lunch sometime this week. I'm eating with my sister tomorrow, like we do every Monday. After work, I have a lot of stuff to do in preparation for our Toms Style Your Sole event. Are you and Rose still coming? It's next Saturday." Gianna asked hopefully.

"Of course we're coming. Rosalie is so excited for it," Alice said.

Gianna opened the front door. "I'll stop in sometime this week and we'll have lunch." She looked down at her bare feet, curling her toes. Her big toe popped and she giggled.

She looked up at Alice and bit her lip. Slowly, she tilted her head up to Alice. Realizing what was about to happen, Alice leaned forward just a tad. Their lips met, softly with a surprising shock. Alice enjoyed the taste of Gianna's lips and the kiss was amazing to her.

When Gianna's tongue brushed across Alice's bottom lip, Alice pulled back. She couldn't help but touch her lips, still tingling after Gianna's taste.

Gianna touched her lips too and smiled at her, "I'll see you sometime this week."

Alice nodded. "I can't wait." Gianna hugged her tightly. Alice walked out of the house.

"Vous avez un corps de rêve," Gianna called out.

Alice turned around. "What does that mean?"

Gianna laughed. "I'll tell you when I see you at lunch." Alice wasn't sure, but she thought Gianna winked at her. Alice laughed a little and went out to her car.

She waved to Gianna as she pulled out. Gianna stood at the door watching Alice leave. She shut the door and went back into the house. She went down the hall and let Manowar out of his room. Then she went upstairs to shower.

Alice drove home with the taste of Gianna still on her lips. When she got home, she didn't shower, since she could still smell Gianna on her and she wasn't ready to let go of her just yet.

* * *

**A/N: Did I really make you wait two weeks for this chapter? *hides* So sorry! I got busy with other things and forgot to update. Forgive me? Hope you enjoyed this fluff chapter, I think Gianna and Alice have bonded enough, right? Time for drama then. *evil laugh* Thanks for reading! -Loveless-**


	12. Faith In A Soul

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

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**Chapter Twelve- Faith In A Soul**

"**All that we had, it's understood**

**Forget all the bad, remember the good**

**There's faith in a soul, there's truth in a song**

**Doing what's right can hurt more than what's wrong**

**Sometimes I can't explain emotion from your pain**

**Everything's changing**

**I've rearranged…**

**Now it's alright, it's not the same**

**Things will be better off this way**

**I see you now survive somehow**

**Now I believe you're stronger than before**

**This is the time and the place**

**We are ever changing**

**Close my eyes,**

**Look inside, now I can see your face**

**Another time, another place**

**Although I'm rearranging**

**I'm still here, I'm never far away"**

**-Craving Lucy- "Far Away"

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**

For the next few days, Alice and Gianna talked on the phone quite a bit. Gianna even had lunch with Alice on Tuesday and Thursday, much to Kate's displeasure. Alice found herself enjoying Gianna's company more and more. She felt that she could really trust Gianna and she was really beginning to fall in love with her.

The next weekend was the Style Your Sole event at Root Fashion and Aura. Alice and Rosalie had already planned on making an appearance there since Gianna had invited them.

Alice was walking downstairs when her front door opened and Rosalie entered her home.

"Sup, McRose?" Alice asked, using the nickname Emmett called her when Rosalie changed her last name to McCarty after she married him.

Rosalie shut the door and glared at her. "I swear if you and Emmett don't stop calling me that I am divorcing Emmett!" She stomped past Alice and went into the kitchen.

Alice giggled and followed her. "So, you excited about this thing today?" she asked her best friend.

"Yeah, Gianna told us it was fun, right? Plus, they'll have shoes!" she nearly squealed. She turned back to Alice and asked, "Are you ready to leave? We can get breakfast before we go to the event and maybe look around at some stores or something."

"Yeah," Alice answered, "I'm ready."

Rosalie looked her up and down and sighed, "Oh honey, you're not really wearing that are you?"

"What's wrong with it?" Alice asked pulling at her t-shirt. She knew they would be out in the Texas heat all day today so she was wearing flip flops, jean shorts and a black t-shirt that read "Schrödinger's cat is dead" on the front and on the back it said, "Schrödinger's cat is not dead." Alice loved that t-shirt, even though she got so many strange looks from people who didn't understand it. Even from Rosalie when she first bought the shirt, and Rose had just stared blankly at her while she explained who Erwin Schrödinger was and why his cat was so important.

"We're going to be outside all day, so I want to be comfortable Rose," Alice told her.

Rosalie sighed dramatically and nodded her head. "Okay then, let's go." The girls set off in Alice's CTS.

Rosalie picked out a small café for them to eat at. They sat in a booth across from each other and ordered their breakfast.

When they started eating, Rosalie spoke, "Alright bitch, you've been hanging out with Gianna this week more than me. Now we're having breakfast and you won't even talk to me. So spill."

Alice smiled. "There's nothing really to tell, Rosalie. We just hang out and talk," she told her friend.

Rosalie raised an eyebrow. "That's it?" Alice nodded. "Have you made out with her yet?"

Alice's eyes widened and she nearly choked on her omelet. "Yes, last night," she admitted.

"Is she a good kisser?" Rosalie pressed. Alice stared at her plate and just nodded. Rose laughed. "It's so funny how shy you are."

Alice looked up and glared at Rosalie, but something behind Rose's shoulder caught her eye. Alice looked harder, there was a woman standing outside the café, facing the street, but Alice could see her face in profile and she knew who that woman was.

"Leah," Alice breathed.

"Leah? What are you talking about Alice?" Rosalie turned to look out the window. Alice stood up and marched out of the café without thinking twice. She pushed the door open but the woman was gone. She looked all around, but she was nowhere to be seen.

"Alice," Rosalie said, placing a hand on Alice's shoulder. Startled, Alice spun around and faced her friend.

"Rose, I swear it was her," she said.

Rosalie shook her head. "No, Alice it wasn't. You know what happened to Leah. Come back inside and finish breakfast, or do you want to go home instead?"

Alice blinked. "No, we're going to the event, remember?"

"I'm sure Gianna would understand if you said you wanted to stay home instead," Rosalie said. She took Alice's hand and led her to the car. Rosalie took her keys so she could drive, as Alice was in some sort of dream state where she was operating on autopilot.

Once they were on the road, Rosalie asked, "Does she know about Leah?"

"Kind of," Alice answered. "She knows I ran away from home and Leah got into an accident. She knows Leah's dead, but that's all I told her."

Rosalie nodded. "Do you think you'll ever tell her the whole story?"

Alice shook her head. "It's too personal. I trust Gianna, but most of what happened was Leah's story and I don't think I could ever share that with her." Rosalie nodded at this, but she also had a small smile. Alice had trusted her enough to tell her everything, but she didn't trust Gianna that much.

It made Rosalie feel somewhat better since Alice had been spending so much time with Gianna, it made her feel left out. She could take some comfort in the fact that Alice only trusted her enough to share her deepest secret.

Rosalie pulled Alice's car into the parking lot of the store Gianna worked at. She and Alice exited the car and began weaving their way through the crowd. Alice spotted Gianna and waved. Gianna waved back and smiled.

She was glad to see Alice and Rosalie here. She genuinely liked them both. Alice and Rosalie were given brief instructions on how to decorate the shoes and then they spent most of the afternoon decorating shoes and talking with random people.

Rosalie noticed that Alice was being quieter than usual, and she worried for her friend. Alice was more rattled than she should have been about seeing a woman who looked like Leah that morning.

When Gianna came over to the girls, Alice greeted her enthusiastically. Gianna had a way of making her forget about Leah, even if it was just for a little while.

"I'm done here, if you guys want to go get something to eat," she said.

"Sure, let's go," Alice said. She gathered her bags together that were filled with all sorts of goodies and the girls left to get dinner.

Leah walked along the sidewalk of the small Texas town. She knew Alice was here somewhere. She had to be, where else could she be? Leah wondered to herself.

She stopped on the corner of a street, waiting for the traffic to slow so she could walk across the street. She turned slightly to look at the building behind her, it was a small café, but the smells emulating from inside smelled delicious. Leah briefly considered going inside before running across the street.

She was determined to find a pay phone or a phonebook or something so she could look to see if Alice was in there. She sighed as she stepped back on the sidewalk and continued walking.


	13. Time's A Healer

**Disclaimer: Not mine.

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**

**Chapter Thirteen- Time's A Healer**

"_**Ooh please don't ask me how I feel, I feel fine  
Oh I cry a bit, I don't sleep too good, but I'm fine  
When can I see you?  
When can I touch you?**_

_**Again and again I ask myself was I wrong?  
Oh but time's a healer, and heaven knows I've been strong  
Maybe we could try  
Maybe we would work this time"**_

**-Genesis- "Please, Don't Ask Me"

* * *

**

Alice didn't know what to do with herself. She was too wired to sleep, but she was also bored. She walked around her house looking for something to do. Everything was clean, she wasn't hungry so she didn't see the need to cook anything. She didn't feel like going out anywhere, though she knew Rosalie would be up for it if she did want to go out. In fact, she didn't even feel like seeing Rosalie right now. Nor did she want to see Gianna.

The simple reason for all of Alice's inner conflict: Leah. Alice knew that she'd seen Leah outside the café a few months ago. And she knew she'd seen her former lover again this morning.

Whoever invented coffee is a god_, Alice told herself as she walked down the street. She didn't have to work today so she was wandering around on her own. Everything was going swimmingly for her. She and Gianna had been seeing each other for six months now and were doing well, she and Rosalie were hanging out regularly and of course everything at work was going well. _

_Alice had just passed the local post office. She took a sip of her coffee, but nearly choked on it when she saw a woman cross the street that looked like Leah. _

Not again_, she thought. Without realizing it, she'd started across the street to follow the woman. _I need to know if it's her_, she told herself. _Of course it's not her, Alice, she died. You saw it happen, _her mental voice said. Alice shook her head and walked on. When she rounded the corner, the woman was nowhere in sight._

"You can't keep doing this to yourself," Alice said aloud to her empty house. "This isn't healthy. Leah is dead, you need to let her go." She repeated these words in her head like a mantra and walked into the living room. Her eyes immediately landed on the painting she'd bought that reminded her of Leah. "You're not helping," she said to it.

She spun around and walked straight out of the house. In the past eight months, she'd met Gianna and started dating her. They'd now been officially dating for six. And in that same amount of time, Alice had "spotted" Leah four times. She was convinced she was going crazy. "It's not healthy to see your long dead lover walking down the street, you know," she said aloud. _Unless they were buried in a pet cemetery_, she thought, which caused her to giggle for some reason.

After five minutes of walking, a loud clap of thunder overhead caused her to jump. "Fucking great," she said. Rain poured from the sky and soaked Alice as she ran back to her house.

She slipped in a mud puddle in her driveway. Cursing, she stood up and stomped into her house.

"Well, today has just been a great day, hasn't it. You followed a random woman to see if she was your dead girlfriend and now you're all muddy and wet because you're too busy stuck in your own head to watch where you're going." She stomped up the stairs to her bathroom, tracking mud on the carpet as she continued to berate herself.

As she went through her bedroom, her phone rang. She groaned and crossed the room to peer at the screen, which read, "Gianna."

Alice sighed. "I'm sorry, honey, I just don't feel like talking to you right now." She spun around, ignoring the still ringing phone and continued into the bathroom.

Twenty minutes later, she exited the bathroom in a cloud of steam. Her phone was ringing again. With an almighty sigh, Alice crossed the room and picked it up, she briefly glimpsed Gianna's name on the screen as she answered.

"Hello?"

"Alice! Where have you been? I've been calling you for half an hour," Gianna said.

"Sorry, babe, I was in the shower. What did you need?" she asked patiently. She wasn't in the mood to talk about her girlfriend's trivial topics like they did every night. Gianna was interested in clothes and shoes, and that's all she talked about. After a while Alice got bored, understandably.

"Yeah, um, I need to talk to you. Right now. Can you come over?"

Alice glanced outside, to see it was still raining. She grimaced. "Sure, I'm on my way."

"Thanks," Gianna said and then she hung up.

Alice tossed her phone aside. "No worries, I'll come running every time you call me because I'm that stupid. You could come over here you know," she said to her empty bedroom. "Doesn't matter I've just had a shower, I'll go back out in the rain just so I can drive to your house where you'll drone on for twenty minutes about work. I don't know how many more complaints about your customers I can take." She snatched her keys and walked out of the house.

She heaved another sigh as she stepped out of the house. _Maybe Gianna and I aren't working out, Alice thought. We have so little in common. I admit I was interested in her at first because she was easy to talk to and I trusted her. More than I should have, actually. But we're just too different. She's materialistic, I'm selfless. She's into fashion and brand names, I'm into . She likes Radiohead, I like Muse. _

Alice sighed as she turned onto Gianna's street. _Maybe I should just break things off. We haven't even had sex yet, so it'll be a clean break_.

The sex part isn't Alice's fault. About a month ago, she decided she was ready to give herself to Gianna completely, it had been Gianna who had refused.

_Gianna's tongue danced inside Alice's mouth as she straddled Alice's waist. Alice was lying on her back on the couch, one of Gianna's hands was buried in her hair, the other hand had pushed her t-shirt up so Gianna could cup Alice's breast. _

_Alice's hands were enjoying where they were placed as well. One was on Gianna's cheek, holding her face in place, the other was dipping into Gianna's pants. _

_Both women moaned when Gianna pressed herself closer to Alice. Gianna felt Alice's fingers sliding into her pants and she pulled away. "Wait, Alice, I think we should stop."_

"_Goddammit all to hell," Alice groaned. "You've got to be kidding me."_

"_I just don't think we're ready for this," Gianna said. She moved completely away from Alice and sat on the other end of the couch. She straightened her shirt and ran her hands through her hair. Alice fixed her own shirt and sat up as well. _

"_I'm all right, if that's what you're worried about. I want to do this with you, I mean I really want to." She laughed once without humor and stared at her girlfriend._

"_Can we wait, please?" Gianna said in a small voice._

_Alice sighed and relented. "Sure. We can wait."_

Alice shut her car door and jogged up the front walk. She rapped on Gianna's door and waited for just a few seconds before Gianna opened it and ushered her inside.

"What's up?" Alice asked as she hung her coat by the door. She turned to face her girlfriend, who was looking grave.

"You need to sit down." Gianna pushed Alice into the living room. Alice sat down on the couch, angling herself to face Gianna who had sat down in the chair next to couch.

Gianna stared at her hands for a moment and sighed. She shut her eyes and then moved to sit on the table in front of Alice.

"Alice," she started. "I need to tell you something, something that could hurt you, but I need to you to know that I didn't plan on this happening."

"What?" Alice asked, a little alarmed at how her girlfriend was acting.

Gianna took a deep breath. "I'm pregnant."

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**A/N: Hi there, remember me? I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to update this. I've just had some personal issues and to be honest I lost my muse in this story because it didn't feel like anyone was reading. But, I'm back now and I hope you guys are sticking with me, even though I've taken so long to update. Forgive me? : ) **


	14. Who Am I to Keep You Down?

**Disclaimer: You know this ain't mine.**

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**Chapter Fourteen- Who Am I to Keep You Down?**

"_**Now there you go again  
You say you want your freedom  
Who am I to keep you down...down  
It's only right that you should  
Play it the way that you feel it  
But listen carefully to the sound  
Of your loneliness  
Like a heartbeat, drives you mad  
In the stillness of remembering  
What you had, And what you lost  
Ooooh, say what you had, you know what you lost**_

_**Thunder only happens when it's raining  
Players only love you when they're playing  
They say, women, they will come and they will go  
When the rain washes you clean, you'll know  
You will know"**_

**-Fleetwood Mac- "Dreams"

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**

"You're pregnant?" Alice repeated.

"I'm pregnant," Gianna confirmed.

"Well, I certainly hope you don't think it's mine," Alice spat.

Gianna closed her eyes. "I know, just listen."

"You cheated on me."

"Yes, but-"

"You lied to me and betrayed me!" Alice yelled. She stood up and walked backwards away from Gianna.

Gianna stood as well. "Alice, let me explain."

"Okay, then let's hear it. How exactly did you get pregnant? Tell me all about it."

Gianna sighed again and said, "A couple months after you and I got together, I met this guy and I started seeing him."

"So you just decided to cheat on me?" Alice demanded.

"Alice, I lied to you."

"Yeah, I fucking got that already," she retorted with a hint of sarcasm, rolling her eyes.

"No, I mean, I lied about something else. I'm not a lesbian. Not even bi-sexual."

Alice fought to keep her expression neutral. "But you- you said you loved me," she whispered, blinking furiously.

"I know I did."

"Did you even mean it?"

"In a way, I suppose," Gianna said.

"Why did you do this to me?" Alice asked, her voice filled with despair. "After everything I told you about Leah. You knew how fragile I was and you did this anyway. Why?"

"I don't suppose there's any good answer to that question."

"Gee, you think?"

"Alice, come on."

"Are you ever going to tell me why you did this?" Alice asked, crossing her arms and ignoring the look on Gianna's face.

Gianna sighed, yet again. "I used to study psychology, okay? I dropped out of school because I kept failing my classes. When I met you I saw this look in your eyes and I just wanted to help you. I thought I could put all my psychology training to good use and help you move on and fall in love with someone who could actually love you back."

"So, I was just your guinea pig for your failed psychology career?" Alice almost yelled.

"I wanted to help you, Alice, believe me. And it worked, I mean, six months ago you would barely talk to anyone besides Rosalie. Now you're so friendly and open."

Alice's breathing increased as she couldn't believe what Gianna was saying. "You used me as a science project so that you could help me? Did you ever think that by doing this you're only causing me more pain and damaging me even more?" she shouted.

"No, I was going to break up with you when I thought you were healed enough. That way you would just move on like a normal person."

Alice froze. She slowly turned her head to face Gianna, who was wearing an angry expression. Rage bubbled up in Alice, _how dare she be angry right now_, Alice thought. _She has no right_.

"What do you mean, 'like a normal person'?" she asked menacingly.

"You're still hung up on Leah. Don't think I haven't heard you say her name in your sleep and Rosalie told me how you keep thinking you're seeing her all over town. She is dead, Alice, let her go already."

Alice's chest swelled with rage again, this time at Rosalie. She'd told Rose about seeing Leah and had wanted it kept between the two of them.

"You have no right to talk about Leah," Alice started.

Gianna cut her off. "How can you be angry at me for cheating on you when you were doing the same thing?" she demanded.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"I genuinely care about you, Alice. I wanted to help you get over Leah. But you're so hung up on her that you can't even give someone else a chance."

"I gave you a chance didn't I? You were the one who stopped us from going to the next level."

"Alice, if you and I had actually had sex that day, you would never have the strength to get over me."

"Oh my god," Alice said. She shook her head. "I can't believe you. You just had this whole thing mapped out, didn't you? Every little detail was perfectly planned so that you would get a clean break and then go on to live with your boyfriend and not in sin with me. Was anything you ever said to me true? Did you lie about having a girlfriend before me?"

"Yes, I did. You were the first girl I ever dated. I told you, I'm straight."

Alice bit her lip and turned her head away. Their entire "relationship" had been one colossal lie. Gianna never loved her, she only used her for her own entertainment. The hurt was settling in now. Alice had only been angry before, outraged even. Now, she was hurt, deeply hurt. She had liked Gianna a lot, maybe even on the verge of loving her. Alice closed her eyes.

"I hope you and your family have a nice life," she spat, before striding out the door without so much of a glance in the direction of her former lover.

Gianna was calling her name from the front door, but Alice ignored her. She climbed into her car and backed out of the driveway. She didn't go home though, Alice drove in the opposite direction from her house.

She pulled over to the side of the road and leaned her forehead against the steering wheel. The rain pounded on the roof of the car above her head as her tears slid easily down her cheeks.

Alice sobbed harder as she went over the events of the night, and the last few months. Gianna was right about one thing: Alice was still hung up on Leah. She didn't know why she couldn't get over her. They'd spent a weekend together and tried to run away together. How could someone fall so in love with someone in just one weekend? Alice had wondered that same thing so many times over the last few years.

She couldn't explain it to anyone- not even Rosalie- the connection she and Leah had shared, the bond they'd formed, the love they'd found. Nothing could compare to what she felt for Leah. Gianna hadn't even gotten a fraction of the love Alice had with Leah. She never could, and Alice knew that deep down.

Hadn't she just been thinking that she and Gianna weren't working out? Hadn't Alice planned on breaking up with Gianna herself? Why did it hurt so much then? They were broken up, exactly what Alice wanted, so why was she crying so much?

_It's not that we're broken up_, Alice thought. "It's that she was right," she said aloud to the empty car. Her voice was barely heard over the pounding rain. Gianna was right that Alice would never find anyone because no one could compare to Leah.

What hurt so much was the fact that Alice had been willing to give her heart- and body- to Gianna only to have been betrayed in such an unbelievable way. Gianna lied, used her and cheated on her. Now Alice would go back to being a shell of her former self and Gianna would go on living a happy life with her boyfriend and they'd raise their baby in a normal environment.

"Something she could never have with me, not that she'd want to anyway," Alice said bitterly. She couldn't take it anymore. Alice flung her door open, slammed behind her and took off running into the night. She ran until she couldn't run anymore. Sobbing and weak, Alice collapsed on the side of the road. She didn't know where she was and at the moment, she didn't much care. Her clothes and skin were soaked from the rain, her hair falling into her eyes and sticking to her face. Her body was shaking, either from the cold or her sobs, she wasn't sure. Her heart pounded against her chest almost painfully. Alice was lying face down, trying to suck in as much air as possible to please her aching lungs. Her legs were sore from running more than they were used to.

Alice closed her eyes against the rain and slowly pulled herself to her feet and started walking again. She didn't know where she was going, but wasn't too worried about that. She figured she'd just walk until she collapsed from exhaustion. Or heartbreak, if it were possible. The sound of running water caught her attention. She looked around and realized she was on top of a bridge. She crossed over to one side and leaned against the railing.

Maybe the idea had always been in her head. Maybe she'd always known it would come to this. Perhaps she'd been planning it since Leah died, even. All it took was one more earth shattering moment, or revelation to send her over the edge. Alice stood up on top of the railing and looked down at the rushing water beneath her. If the fall didn't kill her, the current would pull her under and she'd drown.

Alice closed her eyes and tilted her face toward the sky. Rain pouring over her face, she opened her mouth and screamed as loud as she could. The one thing she wanted and loved more than anything in this world, wasn't even in this world anymore. That was all about to change though. Alice closed her mouth and smiled.

It was getting better already, she could hear Leah's voice calling her name. Screaming her name, really.

"I'm coming, Leah. I'll see you soon enough," she said to the sky and then she let herself fall forward.

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**A/N: Okay, please don't hurt me! *ducks flying objects* You may have to wait a bit for the next chapter, I have other things that need my attention, and I can only hope I won't get crucified before I get the next chapter out. ~Loveless~**


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